Nigerian Media entrepreneur Mo Abudu, actor John Boyega and Ghanaian actress Lydia Forson have all expressed their dissatisfaction after Sky News published an article referring to the threaded hairstyle as a “spiky coronavirus haircut”.

Insisting that the post be taken down by the UK news outlet, the African hairdo  that has been popular among African women for decades became the talk on social media because Sky News claimed it gained popularity due to its resemblance to the Coronavirus.

It also angered a lot of social media users, particularly Africans, who were displeased with the misrepresentation and the fact that they called it a “haircut”.

See their reactions below.

1. Africa is a continent NOT a country.
2. This is not a haircut it’s African threading.
3. You knew full well what the lady meant, but pushed this headline and angle for your racist satisfaction.
4. You’re encouraging the demonization of black hairstyles.

— #asklydiaforson (@lydiaforson) May 13, 2020

View this post on Instagram

Hello beautiful people, ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ A recent publication made by @skynews on Monday 11, May 2020 titled “Spiky coronavirus haircut growing in popularity in Africa – here’s why” ⁣- has come to my attention and here’s what I have to say:⁣ ⁣⁣ For starters it’s not a haircut, it’s a hairstyle!!!⁣ ⁣ Hair has played a significant role in the culture of ancient African civilizations. It symbolized one’s family background, social status, spirituality, tribe, and marital status.⁣⁣ ⁣ As early as the 15th century, different tribes used hair to show one’s social hierarchy. Members of royalty wore elaborate hairstyles as a symbol of their stature. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Another thing to note is that Africa is rich with ancient hair traditions and styles. African threading dated as far back as the late 15th century and is a cherished tradition amongst women in parts of Nigeria, Ghana, and the entire Sub Saharan Africa.⁣⁣ ⁣ Generations of black women have used African Threading to style their hair and straighten it naturally. ⁣ ⁣ It is disrespectful to our African culture to say this hairstyle is recently gaining popularity because of the Corona virus or it is similar to a virus 🦠 which is a major devastation to the world at present.⁣ ⁣ I would like all African women to send a message to #SkyNews complaining about the post and report. ⁣ ⁣⁣ @skynews, on behalf of myself and many other African women who have shown their displeasure of this post, I would like to urge you to take this post down as soon as possible. It is derogatory and condescending to us, our forefathers, our foremothers and generations to come.⁣ ⁣ For future reference, @skynews kindly #Swipeleft to see pictures from over the years that shows the beauty of African women and our traditional hairstyles.

A post shared by Mo Abudu (@moabudu) on May 16, 2020 at 1:03am PDT

Honestly!!! https://t.co/HcLzSinQGM

— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) May 16, 2020

For more News, follow us on Instagram @OnoBelloMedia @OBStreetStyle | Twitter: OnoBello | Facebook: OnoBello Magazine

Leave your views in comments box below