I was listening to WURD, and Kimberly Rollins of Oxsun Natural Hair Salon was on. They were talking about braiding laws and licensing.
I can understand that a lot of licensed cosmetologists are for regulation, considering that they have spent a lot of time and money to earn and retain their license. On the other hand, I think braiders are making a lot of money - relatively speaking - and the government wants their cut.
Taalib-Din Uqdah says it's about "Race, money, politics, power, and control."
Much Love,
Kaya Casper, Publisher
Naturally You! Magazine
The Natural Haircare & Lifestyle Magazine
www.NaturallyYouMagazine.com
kcasper@NaturallyYouMagazine.com
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as a natural hair stylist, i appreciated the article, but was rather disappointed that the importance of learning and adhering to sanitary practices was underplayed. this type of training is quite integral to preventing this industry from becoming a public health threat. whether you are african or african-american, if you braid hair, it is imperative that you know and practice good sanitation when dealing with clients. it is also important that you learn how to protect yourself and your clients from infectious disease and how to prevent damaging your client's hair. there is quite a bit of litigation that happens in the beauty industry, and some sort of formal training is a good way to help reduce the risk of getting sued by a client who says they got ring worm from your shop or home, or lost hair because you braided it too tightly. what i can't fathom is why everyone wants to force braiders to take a 1500 hour course, why not just modify it so that stylists can learn the basics of sanitation and maybe how to cut (a useful skill that does not require chemical application), and how to properly drape and wash a client, in addition to whatever else might be useful to a natural stylist. is that so hard? it seems to me that all they'd have to do is cut and paste together bits and pieces of the current curriculum and voila! a way to license natural stylists. as a natural stylist, i wouldn't be opposed to this. i think the benefits of being able to operate a salon openly and freely would far outweigh the inconvenience of having to take a class. i think that a bit of compromise is needed from all parties involved.
~naadii~
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