Diary of a Mad Black Girl With Curls: Natural Hair, Identity, and Resistance at the University of Delaware

• Joycelyn Brown, Visual Communications, University of Delaware

• Robyn Phillips-Pendleton, Art and Design, University of Delaware

Joycelyn Brown, a rising senior Visual Communications student at the University of Delaware, explores the intersection of race, identity, and beauty standards through a visual awareness campaign that centers the experiences of Black students with natural hair. Drawing from personal experience and cultural context, her project seeks to empower members of the natural hair community to feel seen, heard, and accurately represented on a predominantly white campus, where Black students comprise only 6.5% of the undergraduate population.

The project title, Diary of a Mad Black Girl with Curls, pays homage to Tyler Perry’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman, a film that explores themes of betrayal, forgiveness, resilience, and the strength of Black women. Brown draws a parallel between these themes and the emotional complexities tied to her natural hair journey.

This summer, Brown conducted historical research on hair discrimination, tracing its origins to the Trans-Atlantic slave trade in the 16th century. Her work was influenced by the documentary 400 Years Without a Comb, which contextualizes how systemic control over Black hair has functioned as a broader tool of racial oppression. By integrating visual storytelling with historical and cultural analysis, Brown’s campaign aims to spark dialogue about Eurocentric beauty norms and the challenges Black students face when navigating identity within institutional spaces, specifically at the University of Delaware.