"No Lye" but a Lot of "Tomfoolery"

I recently picked up a copy of Tulani Kinard's No Lye, a book promoting "natural hair care" for African American women. Surprise, surprise! State regulation was advocated in the same breath as upholding tradition!

Kinard's argument is straightforward: Age-old African hair care methods are safer, healthier, and self-esteem building. In keeping with these traditions, black women today should braid, loc, and twist their hair.

"Now for the clencher": Increased demand for these traditional hairstyles require legal definitions for the techniques and certified professionals to do them.

Gee, these techniques supposedly survive today because of hundreds of years preservation by women who weren't certified. Why change all of the sudden now?