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Racism
Curly Hair Journeys
Tame and control: my hair, my childhood
I got my hair cut last week. I go to a salon that specializes in “curly cuts”, and I pay a premium for that service. Yes, it costs more to get a decent haircut when you have tight curls.
The owner of the salon has been doing “curly cuts” for many years. She trained in the DevaCurl method, but now she offers her own “curly cut” classes. The apprentices that work at her salon learn to work with all types of curls, something that is not taught in beauty schools.
“I went to school for 1,600 hours, and we probably spent about five of those hours working on hair that wasn’t naturally straight. So as a stylist, you come out with very basic knowledge, and it’s not a culture that speaks to texture because their whole philosophy is about making hair straight.” says celebrity hairstylist Tippi Shorter.
My conversation with the new apprentice at the salon confirmed the above quote. He is Puerto Rican, and he just got his first curly cut done by the salon’s owner. He told me that it was his first decent haircut, and he…
