Spice Girl among leaders of campaign to end afro-hair discrimination

Mel B says she was told to straighten her hair for the video of Wannabe - The Spice Girls' break-out hit - because her "big hair didn't fit the pop star mould".

But the 49-year-old star said she defied the stylist "and danced as me, with my big hair, my brown skin and I was totally proud of who I was".

The singer, who rose to fame as "Scary Spice", is one of the high-profile black British stars calling on the government to make the UK the first Western country to introduce a law to end afro-hair discrimination.

Posting a statement on Instagram, Brown recalled her childhood in working-class Leeds in the 1970s, admitting she "got called names" and was "singled out" as a child due to her mixed-race heritage.

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Describing her "big, wild, curly hair" she explained: "It wasn't neat and tidy. There was too much of it to fit into elastic hair bands and I wore it out."

Going on to describe her introduction to showbiz, she said: "The very first video shoot I did as a Spice Girl for Wannabe, the stylists took one look at my hair and told me it had to be straightened. My big hair didn't fit the pop star mould.

"But I stood my ground - backed by my girls - and I sang and danced as me with my big hair, my brown skin and I was totally proud of who I was.

"I had no idea the impact that video had on thousands of little brown and black girls all over the country."

She went on to talk about her family - daughters Phoenix, 25, Angel, 17, and Madison, 13.

"I have three children with big curly hair and all of them take pride in their hair, their identity and their culture.

"I also know that sometimes they have faced issues with their hair - as I did."

She concluded by pledging her support to World Afro Day (WAD) and its call for the Equality Act to protect against afro-hair discrimination in the UK.

Campaigners have long argued that British children with afro hair can be unfairly penalised for wearing natural hairstyles, or certain braids.

Now, the WAD campaign has written an open letter to MPs asking them to update the 2010 Equality Act, introducing afro-hair as a protected characteristic.

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Supported by MP Paulette Hamilton, who represents Birmingham Erdington, they are hosting a drop-in clinic for MPs on Tuesday.

Other stars to have signed the open letter include singer Beverley Knight, presenter Fleur East and Professor Patrick Vernon OBE.

The letter is part of WAD's 100 Voices, 100 Words campaign, for which each supporter has written 100 words on why the change in law is vital.

The eighth annual World Afro Day is on Sunday 15 September.