A new TV series with the intention to dispel the myths and stereotypes around people with dreadlocks
Dreads as Community Leaders/Builders
aloha! i've worn dreads for about 10 years now. always self-employed as a theater and music performer, i lived in theater and circus groups with many other people who wore dreads. what's curious is that our work took us to many different cultures, some of which knew and respected dreads, like in Cameroun, but found it funny that a european guy would do that to his hair. other people in rural places in Jordan, Turkey, Laos, Vietnam, Mongolia and China had never even seen dreads before and wanted to touch them and make sure they weren't a wig. most men in these places wear only short hair anyway. i'm a professional clown, so it was always fun to play with them and their misconceptions and fears.
sometimes it's been restricting, though, like not being able to disguise myself as a "serious" and accepted humanitarian aid worker with an NGO working with Syrian refugees. being there as a clown was okay, because having fun with the kids was not considered serious work by people in the camp, but wearing dreads would never be seen as part of this culture, i was told.
while wearing dreads, my work has taken me to Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, France, Italy, Russia, Kaliningrad, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Kasachstan, Kirgistan, Japan, Vietnam, Laos, Singapore, Mongolia, Cameroun, Turkey, Cyprus, Israel/Palestine and currently Jordan. i could offer interesting insights to these cultures' views on dreads and connect you with people in many of those countries who wear dreads.
Our project websites are:
salam,
tyle