Christopher Rivera

Black Dominican Beauty, 2021

The issue of racism in the Dominican Republic is an epidemic that is rooted French and Spanish colonization in the early 1800’s, as well as US imperialism and propaganda from the 1960’s onward. Many Dominicans hold prejudice against their Haitian siblings, engendering internalized anti-blackness among Quisqueyanos. While some Dominicans are adamant to neglect their black ancestry, the existence of this identity remains pervasive in their cultural norms. Dominicans embrace their blackness unconsciously when they get their hair done. Furthermore, the visual cues of an individual’s self-image blurs the line between Dominican and Haitian identities.

In this series I capture the intimacy created between a hair dresser or barber and their clients, whom are my family members. I highlight how Dominicans reproduce Black beauty through utilizing Black cultural practices.