Black men and women in Tennessee celebrated a major win this year, as Tennessee lawmakers passed the CROWN Act.
In an August 1st Flyer article by Hawa Ceesay, it is explained that the CROWN Act, which stands for “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair,” prohibits companies from discrimination based on an employee’s hairstyle. The passing of the CROWN Act not only sparked conversation in the Black-hair community, but it caused many to further examine the injustices that Black and brown people face based on their hair.
According to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, hair discrimination is rooted in “systemic racism and its purpose is to preserve white spaces.” Joshua Adams of the Memphis chapter of Black Lives Matter explains that all facets of lives have been touched by systemic inequalities and that spaces that were meant to serve Black people directly, such as barber shops and salons, were set up as a response to living in a “de facto segregated world.”
“Why do some barber shops not have a loctician on hand? It’s because of systemic segregation. A lot of white people don’t know how to do Black hair. We’ve lived our lives almost in separate enclaves for decades, if not centuries, here in America,” Adams says.
It’s a luxury that many Black and brown people aren’t afforded – to be able to walk into any franchise salon and have someone cater to their specific hair needs and treatments. While many salons and licensing programs now require stylists to know how to do natural hairstyles and treatments, many salons were opened in Memphis as a response to this.
“Hair is hair, but you have to be educated on all types of hair,” says Seville McKinnon. “No matter what race you are, there are people of every race that have coarse hair, that have fine hair, thin hair, and big hair.”
McKinnon is the owner of Textures Studio located at 8100 Macon Station in Cordova. While McKinnon and her team offer a number of traditional salon services, as well as those that cater to Black and brown customers, McKinnon explains that at its core, the salon’s main focus is on maintaining a “healthy head of hair.”
McKinnon says that the salon recently revived a hair-talk series called “Shop Talk,” where she would encourage clients to bring someone who has never been in her shop, in hopes of educating people on hair and any myths or questions that they may have.
“It’s very interesting to hear the stories that a lot of women of color share. Whether it’s in the professional world, in the personal world, or their relationships, about the struggles they have with their hair,” McKinnon says. “It’s really interesting for us as professionals, really explaining and helping a person understand their head of hair. Even though you live with it, it can be hard to fully understand and grasp the concept of what you need.”
As a woman who grew up in Memphis, McKinnon says that the hair landscape has changed so much. Being a stylist that has worked hard to stay up to date with trends such as wigs and extensions, she realized that there are a lot of young girls who haven’t been able to fall in love with their natural head of hair.
McKinnon admits that she has worn extensions and braids when she was younger, but it wasn’t because she felt like she had to. This is where she believes a shift has occurred when looking at haircare.
“I’m hoping more professionals come on board with really being able to educate clients in falling in love with their hair,” McKinnon says. “I don’t think we’re done. I think we still have a ways to go.”
In educating clients on their hair and how to maintain it, McKinnon explains that there are a lot of things that play a role in the success of this. One of these is making sure the client is able to find a licensed stylist.
“Hopefully everyone can come back onto the seriousness and the certification of understanding hair, so they can relay that information. I think it’s important for every professional, no matter what race, to work on.”