I'm No Crash Test Dummy
To go or not to go? Typically, salons and barbershops are the places to be when debates get heated. The debate of to go work in a hair salon or stay at home is now the feature story on the news, government zoom testimonies, social media posts, and text messages. What are we to do?
Opinions are like cell phones; everybody’s got one. In this case, one more won’t hurt. As a licensed cosmetologist, I can think of three simple reason why we should not be in the first round of businesses to open May 1st, in the state of Ohio. Drum roll please.
Number one. We should not be open because we have not flattened the curve. We need to allow the hospitals to align their resources of staff, PPE and mental health readiness for future patients and the ever-looming potential of a resurgence. We do not work in the hospitals. We are not on the front line, but when we or our loved ones get sick, trust me; we won’t be whistling Dixie. Citizens are getting acclimated to social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands and staying away from crowds. This will take some time. Some will never abide by the rules of engagement during a pandemic. They do not care how their actions can seriously affect others. Some will get the virus. Some will transmit the virus. Some will live and some will die.
Number two. Considering the idiot #45 and the federal government has failed us miserably, we are not aware of the status of the supply of PPE available. This country is broken. “It is a third world country wearing a Gucci belt as one post read.” Money over lives, the American way. Many prefer and value business over science to navigate this pandemic. The beauty and barber industry are in the business of public safety and sanitation, believe it or not. I am not aware if the supply chain is up to par for the demands of all the industries who need gloves, masks, cleaning supplies, wipes, OSHA solutions, bleach, and so on. Currently, salon and barbershop owners will be shopping at supply stores and alongside their customers to buy what is needed to open per the outlines of the state. Therefore, we need to wait for that supply chain to build up so everybody’s spending can be spent on what is needed to operate during a pandemic. The last thing we want is to have to close our doors again.
Number three. The Coronavirus yields the COVID 19 disease. Both are detrimental and health compromising to African Americans who are elderly, African Americans with lung diseases, compromised immune systems, heart diseases, cancer and obesity. That is a double whammy for us as African Americans professionals and customers. I personally do not desire to be a crash test dummy. I personally, love my elders. Before, after and during the inception of this country enslaved Africans, slaves, negroes, Blacks and African Americans have suffered from diseases that were given to us by those who enslaved, colonized and used us as guinea pigs. From the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, to Henrietta Lacks, to Agent Orange. Now, the novel Coronavirus and its disease COVID 19 is affecting us more than the people who reside on the continent where it was first discovered. This is not our stuff!
Not again, ye say? I dare you to read Medical Apartheid by Harriet A. Washington. The introduction alone will gripe your stomach and tear your eyes. Don’t care to buy or read another book? Simply download the free snippet. If you are the faint at heart and can’t handle the truth of the torture African Americans went through for the advancement of modern medicine, try Dr. Joy DeGruy’s, Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome. That ought to get your drawls in a bunch. If you are not big on reading beyond this blog, then copy and paste the link below to watch her tell it better than this blog.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGjSday7f_8
On that note, I conclude. I do not mind the wait. At some point we all will have to return to work. We will have to learn to live during a pandemic. We will have to wait our turn and follow the orders given; rather we like it or not. I am in a financial pickle like most. As a business owner, my business is not eligible for a loan. Nor do I want one. I have not applied for unemployment. No, I have not received a stimulus check. I know the struggle is real. I am using this opportunity to rewrite my business plan. That current one is no good for a pandemic. I am having fun using the “new normal” to do what I always knew was normal. Like volunteering. I volunteer my time every Monday to teach cosmetology online to the students attending cosmetology school in the Gambia and Senegal. Who knew...the library I was able install at the school with the help of the Cleveland Public Library and fine donors would yield what I knew in my heart would some day be needed? The students are using the library with the books and computers donated to learn during a pandemic. I am making some money. Not as much as I do behind the chair, but some beats none. Perhaps, you can visit my new hair care membership on Patreon at, https://www.patreon.com/globalhaircare?fan_landing=true to support my new business venture. It is hard out here now. Yes, things are difficult. As the young folks say, “The struggle is real.” It is real. I also know, that no matter how hard one struggles, once they are placed in a body bag, it’s zipped. There is no wiggling out.
In the meantime, I miss you. I will be glad when I can go back to work. I’ll be saving a seat for you. Enjoy this fascinating video produced by Mr. Wil Shelton. He is the CEO of Wil Power Integrated. It best captures my sentiments.
Peace, love and hair