“Asking me to change my hair is like asking me to erase my Blackness.” —18-year-old ⁣antiracism and social justice activist Zulaikha Patel (zulaikhapatel_) ⁣ ⁣ After struggling with racial bullying and low self-esteem in primary school, Zulaikha started her first day at an all-girls school in Pretoria, South Africa, at age 13 confident and hopeful: “My Afro was flourishing and my curls were popping,” she says. “But from the get-go, overt racism was thrown in my face.” ⁣ ⁣ Zulaikha was scolded by teachers for speaking with friends in her native tongue at the formerly all-white school. And she was told her hair didn’t comply with school policy. “They said it had to be tied at the nape of your neck. Think about that: When you’re African, and you have not chemically straightened your hair, that is impossible. I have yet to see the day that I have tied my hair at the nape of my neck.” ⁣ ⁣ Zulaikha, along with a dozen classmates, protested at school and began the #StopRacismAtPretoriaGirlsHi...