Gabrielle Union Is Responding To Her Hair Trolls In The Best Way

When Gabrielle Union announced her new Flawless by Gabrielle Union haircare line in January, I can admit that I was pretty — no, VERY — excited. The actress' hair has always been enviably laid, and let's be honest: If there's a way to look anything like Gabrielle Union, I will gladly take that opportunity.

She told WWD that the inspiration behind the line was to give women with textured hair great hair days — which is a positive and necessary mission. But since haters STAY hating, some of them flocked to social media to express their doubts about Union's intentions. "Shouldn't you show that the hair care products work. Who can tell if you're wearing weave," one person commented on her Instagram announcement about the new business.

Well, miserable troll, my girl Gab is here to set you straight. She showed off her long, healthy hair on Instagram a few weeks ago, along with a touching story. "Around 25 years old, I stopped using relaxers and slowly grew my natural hair out," she wrote. "It's been a helluva hair journey. We are all on a hair journey. I created #Flawless for all of us on this journey of having healthy, nourished, and nurtured hair. This is for those curious about my natural hair and needed proof it actually existed." Insert mic drop here.

And the beautiful "proof" keeps coming. So far, we've seen her curls in a pineapple, and in adorable double buns before she deep conditioned. She also wore a wash-and-go (with the baby hairs flourishing, mind you) for a red carpet event — and in my honest opinion, has never looked better.

It's so inspiring to see women like Union and Michelle Obama switch it up and embrace their textures, especially when Black women are told that straighter hair is more acceptable and desirable in the workplace (and sometimes by guys, too).

For Union, it's been a long time coming. "I’ve finally gotten to a place of self-acceptance and recognizing that my natural hair is beautiful — and so is whatever weave I may wear," she told Glamour. "I’m perfectly happy rocking an Afro puff, my French braids, Senegalese twists, a faux-hawk, or an ombré wig, or heat-styling my natural hair with extensions, like in the photo above. And that makes me a happy person in my life."