THE MISCONCEPTION OF WAIST BEADS

 Written by a very aggravated Naomi during lectures.

Hey guys, welcome back to our blog and if it’s your first time visiting, welcome to the family (too soon?). So let’s get right to it.

  As style and fashion evolves, we tend to see that most trends are either imitated from the ancient times or inspired by them. And an example of these timeless beauties is the controversial African adornment; the waist bead.

ORIGIN OF THE WAIST BEAD

The wearing of waist beads have been dated back to very  primitive times, even before the colonial rule came to play. It was an accessory used by African women for weight checking, on auspicious occasions and to make them feel sexy.
But why in God’s name do our generation of ‘righteous people’ scorn waist beads and the people who wear them?.

"I DON’T LIKE THEM, IT’S SCANDALOUS"

Most ladies have taken to wearing waist beads underneath their clothes or as part of a particular dress ensemble but automatically, they are seen as either whores or ‘husband snatchers’ ( in the words of Nigerian elders). I remember a very cringe-worthy encounter I had with a woman who had a prejudiced view about waist bead wearers and was rude enough to voice her displeasure. We were both on the queue of the bank's atm disposal. When I was done withdrawing, my card fell so I abruptly picked it up to meet the face of a very disgusted stranger. Me being the business-minding kinda person I was, chose to ignore her and go on with my day. “Excuse me young lady” called the lady to my retreating back “yes ma’am?” I said politely, flashing my teeth in fake optimism.

 “You have waist beads on”, she said with a deep, condescending-igbo accent. “yes” I replied, unsure of where she was going to. “I don’t like them, they’re scandalous”.
“well good for you ma!” was what I wanted to say, but the good girl in me compelled me not to. I guess my silence encouraged her to go on as she
said “You shouldn’t be wearing it” with a scowl on her face.
Thank you ma I replied hatefully, willing every power in me not to throw her the middle finger as I turned to go.
You see, it’s one thing to not like someone/thing but going out of your way to state it takes a whole lot of Nigerian nerve.
So this brings me to this question; why do people have this ‘Judge a book by its cover’ mentality?. And this isn’t limited to people that wear waist beads alone but also other individuals who just don’t fit in to our idea of ‘normal’. I mean who gave us the power to judge right from wrong?.

Having said all this, I implore us all to be open-minded about people and things we haven't tried or are not familiar with.  So we don't end up like that nosy igbo woman. Ciao!.