CIVIL RIGHTS VS. EQUAL RIGHTS IN ETHNIC COSMETOLOGY
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For over thirty-five years, pharmacy look sickness I have been touring the country conducting lectures entitled What The Text Book Left Out Or Ignored. The classes are designed to elevate the cosmetologist and students understanding by identifying and correcting many of the inaccuracies that are taught in the cosmetology text books and sanctioned by the State Boards that has an indirect impact on the ethnic professional in this regard, shop decease especially in the areas of Chemistry, Hair Relaxing, Cold Waving, Press & Curl and hair restructure. Although it may be quite unintentional, most cosmetology text books serve to reinforce and confirm much of the misinformation that is taught and as such, do not aid in correcting the confusion that most (if not all) ethnic professionals must deal with.
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Let me share this observation with you. Back in 1965 when the desegregation order became the law of the land, it meant an enormous gain to black America in many areas of American life. Every area of social, educational and business endeavors were changed and improved with one exception. That exception was the Black owned and operated Cosmetology Schools. Since 1965 until the present, more then 80% of such schools no longer exist. Black owned chain school operations such as MADAM C.J. WALKER, PORO AND APEX no longer exists, or are so down sized that they no longer have the impact or significance they once enjoyed. They have been replaced by a growing number of non-black schools and Trade Technical Schools.
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Many of the black owned schools were in the South, however many more were in the large mid-western and eastern cities. As a result black instructors decreased by a large number. The chief reason for this was, prior to 1965, most white owned schools were private and strictly off-limits to blacks, either because of segregation, or lack of curriculums/know how of black hair care requirements. But because these schools offered better and more modern facilities than most black owned schools, black students were drawn to them, plus they were fascinated and curious about the new opportunities open to them after the 1965 desegregation order. As a result we now have TWICE as many black students being taught by only HALF as many black instructors as there were prior to 1965. This turned out to be a windfall for the white owned and trade schools, because today over 1/3 of the student body in these schools are black, yet blacks are only 11% of the total population.
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Although the schools were required by law to accept black students, they were not mandated to CHANGE their curriculum to INCLUDE the special circumstances and needs of black hair care. Today many years past 1965, this situation has changed very little. For example, if a black student graduates from beauty school knowing ONLY what is required by the State Boards and no more, that student will be ill equipped to practice cosmetology on the majority of black clientele. CIVIL RIGHTS allowed the opportunity to go to any school of choice, but did not insure EQUAL RIGHTS to get the information necessary in order to be successful with in the ethnic community, working on ethnic clientele.
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One major example of this is Pressing and Curling. The majority of White owned and Trade Technical Schools do not teach the practical know how of this service. In fact, most of them do not even have the equipment to render or teach this service.
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Most State Boards only require the school to touch on the subject as reflected in one chapter of the textbook. The students are not required to know the practical (or hands-on) aspect of Pressing and Curling. Most State Boards do not even test the students on this service, other than one or two questions on the subject on one of the test performed. As a result, many students graduating from such schools seek this know how from other Black beauticians (most of whom are from the old schools), because they find they cannot perform this service for the large number of potential customers who seek them out for this know how.
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The fact is, somewhere between 40% and 60% of Black female women and children require the Press and Curl hair style; and every year there are fewer Black professionals who know this aspect of Black hair care. As a result, most of this potential beauty shop service is done at home by non-professionals instead of in salons where it belongs.
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One of the tragic aspects of Black Cosmetology is this: In most States if a student took a Black patron to perform a complete Permanent Curl as part of his/her testing at the State Board Examination, one of two things would happen; (One) is, the student would do the curl as requested by the State examiner and end up with unsatisfactory results, the student would pass the test, because he/she would have followed established State Board procedure, even if that procedure was wrong for the hair being worked on. Or, (Two) he/she would do the curl as it should be done on naturally over-curly (or kinky) hair and end with beautiful and lustrous results; but fail that aspect of the State Board examination.
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The reason for this is most State Boards and textbooks are only concerned with the permanent curl as it relates to straight hair. The truth of the matter is there are basically five (5) major differences when doing the procedure on any curly or kinky hair.
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STUDENT DE-PROGRAMMING AND RE-PROGRAMMING
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I have talked to many Black school owners and instructors, and have learned that much of the practical application of cosmetology as performed on Black clientele in the schools is in direct conflict with what is tested for by the State Boards of Cosmetology. This is due to two facts:
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The State Boards have not kept pace with new and improved methods and
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Technology currently in use in the practice of cosmetology.
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They have practically ignored the special circumstances or methodology of cosmetology services required for Black clientele.
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(If you read my book on this subject entitled WHAT THE TEXT BOOKS LEFT OUT AND WHAT THE STATEBOARD OF COSMETOLOGY IGNORED, subtitled how this has an effect on ethnic professionals available by contacting us at our email address liquidgoldbondng@aol.com.
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When the time comes for the Black student to prepare for the State Board examination, the Black schools or instructors sometimes find it necessary to DE-PROGRAM the student from what he/she was taught doing the practical work on the floor during the course of study, and to RE-PROGRAM the student in preparation for the State examination.
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This sort of conflict should not exist for any student of any race or creed, but it does, most especially for the Black student, and puts an extra burden on a caring instructor who wants to prepare the student for the real world after the State Board requirements are met, but first must digress to old fashioned or impractical methods in order to prepare the student for the State Board.
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SO if you are under the mistaken impression that CIVIL RIGHTS and EQAUL RIGHTS share the same meaning and intent, you now know better, not only in the instructions of cosmetology, but in many other areas as well.
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