Dreadlocks originated in numerous cultures

The argument

Before the development of modern technology, homo-sapiens let their hair naturally mat and lock, so it is difficult to pinpoint the first use of the hairstyle. This is the foundation of the argument: locked hair is what untended hair does, which means it is not an invention that some particular people made and others adopted from them. Egyptians have been credited as the first culture to have dreadlocks since they have been discovered on mummies. Since then, others such as Romans, Greeks, Vikings, Indians, Christians, Germans, and Africans have also incorporated dreads into their cultures. A list of that spread — across continents, climates and eras with no plausible line of transmission between many of them — is what an independently arising practice looks like, rather than one belonging to a single tradition that others have borrowed. The meanings attached to it have varied as well. Traditionally, people have dreaded their hair to prevent energies from leaving their bodies, which they believed to come from a person's head; the tight knotting and matting will trap the energy so it stays with the person longer. Most commonly, dreadlocks are associated with Jamaican and Rastafarian culture. Ex-slaves used the hairstyle to revolt against European values that were being forced upon them. Rastafarians have dreads because of their belief from the Bible that hair gives people strength, and weakens them if cut. On this argument, the association with one culture is a matter of prominence rather than of origin: the same physical form has carried a religious meaning, a political one and a practical one in different places. Because dreadlocks originated in numerous cultures rather than in any one of them, white people should be able to have dreadlocks.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Despite being from many cultures, dreadlocks are most connected to African and Rastafarian cultures. Those minority groups have also faced the most discrimination and prejudice because of their hair. White people should not have dreadlocks since they do not have ties to those cultures and do not face the same discrimination.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] Although this was true in the past, dreadlocks are now associated primarily with African and Rastafarian cultures.