Zendaya explains why she wore an afro on the red carpet

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The 21-year-old actress wore her hair in an afro at Monday's InStyle Awards in Los Angeles, California
In a post shared to her Instagram, she credited her 'stunning aunties and a hint of Angela Davis' for inspiring her to wear the iconic look
She shared a throwback black-and-white image of her aunts, who she said once were members of the Black Panther Party
Zendaya has spoken in the past about the importance of representation in pop culture

Published: 14:58 EDT, 25 October 2017 | Updated: 17:03 EDT, 25 October 2017

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Zendaya has credited her aunts and political activist Angela Davis as her inspiration behind her hairstyle of choice at Monday's InStyle Awards in Los Angeles, California.

The 21-year-old actress and singer is known for frequently trying out new 'dos — but her latest look may be making as much of a political statement as a beauty one.

In an Instagram post following the event, Zendaya shared a red carpet photo alongside a black-white throwback snap of her family, captioning it: 'Last nights inspo...my stunning aunties (my daddy's all the way on the left) and a hint of Angela Davis.'

Her inspiration: Zendaya, 21, at the 2017 InStyle Awards on Monday. She credited her 'aunties' and activist Angela Davis for her afro hairdo

In awe: The actress and singer at the 2017 InStyle Awards. She shared a picture on Instagram where people took to the comments to share their admiration

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Zendaya Coleman stole the show as she arrived at the InStyle Awards in Los Angeles this week.

The actress' dress commanded attention with its dégradé colourful design in purple, red, black and orange hues. We love the dainty chiffon and statement tiered finish and Zendaya rocked it with her'fro and scarlet platform heels.

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People were quick to share their enthusiasm for her decision to wear an afro at an awards ceremony, where celebrities typically stick to 'long extensions and bouncy blowouts'.

Followers commented a series of 'slay' and 'you look beautiful' quips on the photo, but for the actress, it was about more much more than the compliments as she wanted to send a message on representation and self love.

Zendaya has spoken of her inspiring aunts before, telling Vogue that her family sometimes held Black Panther Party meetings in their basement in the '60s.

'My aunties were Black Panthers,' she said. 'Afros, the whole nine.'

Angela Davis, meanwhile, is a vocal political activist who has had ties to the Black Panthers and the Communist Party USA and was very involved in the American Civil Rights Movement.

She has also spoken in the past about the impact her hair has had on her life.

'I was in a primarily white [elementary] school, so most of the girls I was around had straight hair. The only time I ever got a compliment on my hair was in the third grade when I straightened it for the first time. And that felt a little weird to me - it affects you,' she told Refinery29 in 2006.

'And I think that that's something a lot of women of color, in general, deal with - accepting and loving their hair. And that's why I love this new movement of women embracing their natural hair and sharing their journeys.'

Taking it back: Her caption read 'Last nights inspo...my stunning aunties (my daddy's all the way on the left) and a hint of Angela Davis'

Like her aunts: The star also shared this black and white photo on her Instagram on Tuesday

She went on to say that it's something her nieces need to see in cartoons characters and TV shows.

'The little girl on my Disney show has Afro puffs because that needs to be something that they see more often, something they see as beautiful - representation is very, very important.'

Two years ago, the singer called out TV personality Guiliana Rancic after she made the controversial comment on Fashion Police which insisted that Zendaya's dreadlocks 'smelled like weed'.

'There is a fine line between what is funny and disrespectful. Someone said something about my hair at the Oscars that left me in awe. Not because I was relishing in rave outfit reviews, but because I was hit with ignorant slurs and pure disrespect,' she said in a Twitter post.

'To say that an 18-year-old young woman with locs must smell of patchouli oil or 'weed' is not only a large stereotype but outrageously offensive. I don't usually feel the need to respond to negative things but certain remarks cannot go unchecked.'

Guiliana apologized for her comment but the rude remark only further projected the voice of the young celeb and the need for more representation in Hollywood.

Young trailblazer: The actress at the 2017 Instyle Awards. She has shared on social media her support for the Black Lives Matter movement

Acceptance: The 21-year-old at the 2017 InStyle Awards. She said that it's very important for women to love their hair

Her Disney channel show, K.C. Undercover, featured her as the title character and a family of color, which was one of her stipulations for signing onto the series.

The self-assured young women continues to voice her opinions on such topics with one of those subjects concerning the Black Lives Matter movement.

In an interview with BET, gearing up for the release of her movie Spiderman: Homecoming, Zendaya said that she thinks the superhero 'would also 'be down' for the movement.

'Personally, I think he'd be down. Of course, because, you know, he always tries to do the right thing and fights for that, so, of course. I think he'd be down for the cause.'

Zendaya frequently shares her support for the cause on social media with one of her most recent Twitter posts saying, 'NO JUSTICE. NO PEACE. #BLACKLIVESMATTER'

And when's she not acting as an activist, she's either in the studio or filming blockbuster hits. One of her upcoming movies, The Greatest Showman, features the actress acting aside Zac Efron and Hugh Jackman.