What do you think has prompted Beneatha to cut her hair short and into an "Afro" hairstyle?

Beneatha is desperately seeking to “find herself.” Mama, Ruth, and Walter mention the many fads she has gone through, such as drama and guitar. This is why the family cannot take her dreams of becoming a doctor too seriously.  When Beneatha meets Joseph Asagai, who is from Africa, Beneatha becomes enthralled in the “back to Africa” movement, which became popular later in the 1960s. Having found herself displaced in the white culture of America of the time, Beneatha, along with many other African Americans, sought to reclaim their African roots and culture. Rather than be an “assimilationist,” which is an African American “adjusting” to the white culture to fit in, Beneatha cuts her hair short in the Afro hairstyle. She contemplates going with Joseph Asagai back to Africa, though the rest of the family disbelieves this.