In countries like Uganda, Ghana, Rwanda and South Africa, many schools allow girls of Asian and Caucasian descent to wear their hair long, but have banned black girls from wearing long hair. In many cases, African girls are asked to cut off their hair very short.

Advocates of the Natural Hair Movement say these school policies teach African girls that they should be ashamed of their hair. In response to this, four Ugandans have created a pop-up hair salon and art installation—Salooni—to remind women how beautiful and artistic their black hair truly is.

The salon is free of charge, and clients are photographed at the end. We discuss the rich history and politics of black hair with Salooni, Co-Founder Aida Mbowa.