Until now, customers with Afro hair usually had to visit special hairdressing salons, as their hair had to be styled and cut differently than the hair of white people. That should change now.
Most people go to the hairdresser and expect them to know how to handle their hair. No matter whether these are red or brown, wavy or smooth, thick or thin, lush or sparse. After all, they learned all of this in their training. How well it is then implemented is another matter – but theoretically a hairdresser knows how to deal with almost any hairy challenge. What many customers are not aware of: This familiar certainty that they will be skillfully styled in almost every salon closest to them is a pretty sure sign that one is white.
Because the hair of many black people works a little differently. They are very curly, very dense, but often very dry. Hairstyling Afro hair requires its own techniques and products, and many hairdressers actually have no idea about them. This is not a mandatory part of their training. If Afro hair is even discussed there, it is often only very briefly.
Afro hair does not appear, or hardly ever, in hairdressing training
This problem came to the fore after many black models and celebrities complained on social media that they had been poorly or not at all hairdressed by unsuspecting and overwhelmed stylists before shoots or performances, or that they were asked directly to do so please take care of your hairstyle yourself. Of course, while the hair of all white colleagues was styled by the professionals.
However, this is of course not just a problem for people in the spotlight. Almost all of us have to and want to go to the hairdresser regularly, but many black people are forced to visit special salons that specialize in Afro hair. And you won’t find them on every corner. The UK is now looking to remedy this injustice by adapting hairdressing training accordingly.
The new rules are intended to open the beauty industry to everyone
The new regulations, which were introduced in June, should finally “create a standard so that the needs of the diverse population of Great Britain can be met,” says the hairdressers’ guild. In a next step, salons are to be rewarded for having their employees trained afterwards so that long-term hairdressers also become more confident in handling Afro hair.
Helena Grzesk, Chair of the British Beauty Council, expressly welcomes these innovations. “The beauty industry can and should be totally inclusive,” she says. “So far, however, tens of thousands of hairdressers have no qualifications to style or cut Afro hair. Our goal now is to reinforce and appreciate the voices of the diverse groups that are our customers. To make sure that each of us saw each other, heard and feels valued. Contact with the beauty industry should be something nice for everyone. ”
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
