African-American hairstyles have changed drastically throughout history. Conk The conk (derived from congolene, a hair straightener gel made from lye) was a hairstyle popular among African-American men from the 1920s to the 1960s. Here is an excerpt from his Autobiography: Shorty soon decided that my hair was finally long enough to be conked1. Relaxers contain lots of chemicals so do this process at home with caution. Since then, conking hair has become synonymous with relaxing hair so it appears straight and smooth. 1960s men hairstyles differed from those of 1950s, they were more stylish. The conk was a hairstyle popular among African American men from the 1920s to the 1960s. In "My First Conk", written with Alex Haley by Malcolm X, he first describes the process of conking his hair when he goes to get the long list of items so that Shorty can make the congolene. Start by choosing a relaxer for your hair … A "butter" or a "conk" is a hairstyle that was popular with some African Americans back in the 1960s. The conk hairdo is a hairstyle for African-American men which involves the use of a chemical relaxer to straighten the hair. The term “conk” is derived from congolene, a gel like substance made from potato starch, egg protein, and lye. The “conk” was a popular hairstyle for Black hair that began in the 1950s. Malcolm X describes how he and his friend, Shorty, conked their hair. My First Conk - Free download as Text File (.txt) or read online for free. Even into the early 1960s, many men still wore their hair conked and conservatively groomed into either a pompadour, slight wave, or slicked back. Before the 1960s, conking was very popular and accepted. The conk, (derived from congolene, a hair straightener gel made from lye) was a hairstyle popular among African-American men from the 1920s to the 1960s. Due to their huge demand we've collected here the most popular men's hairstyles … 1960s men hair styles are said to be the completing piece of those of 1950s. In the first half of the 1960’s, many African-American men still wore their hair in what was called a “conk”. A conk also known as a ” congolene” was a popular hairstyle among African Americans in the 1930’s to mid 1960’s. The conk is a hairstyle that Byron Watson got in the book "The Watsons Go To Birmingham-1963" Charles Wrangel does not conk his hair---many African Americans have naturally thin, straight hair and don't use chemicals to relax it. Malcolm X then proceeds to illustrate the agony of combing congolene through his hair, making his hair straight, and thus giving him his first conk. This hairstyle was immensely popular in the 1920s through the 1960s, before fading out as a result of a rise of interest in celebrating African heritage and the look of more naturally styled black hair. 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