NEW ORLEANS - Step inside the doors right off of Broad and Canal, where the hustle and bustle of everyday life dominate the talk of the neighborhood and you are immediately immersed into an entirely different world. A world characterized by excitement, laughter, prayer, and if you stay long enough, a stimulating conversation about the issues plaguing the African-American community.
On the surface, a barbershop is a place men go to for haircuts and fresh shaves, but for many African-American men, the barbershop serves as a beacon of cultural awareness, a place to engage in political discourse and the foundation for social change.
Located at 130 S. Broad St., Heavenly House of Style is managed by Donald Ellzey. Ellzey has been working in the business for over 25 years now (22 of which I’ve been his client) and I think it’s safe to say he has the trade down to a science.
Sitting in his chair once a week, I’ve learned a thing or two about myself and the shop. For instance, Heavenly House originally started out in a smaller shop further down Broad Street.
As I think back to some of my earliest trips to the barbershop, also known simply as “the shop,” they usually went a little something like this: I’d greet my barber to let him know I was there, then play a round of musical chairs dishing out handshakes, smiles and a typical New Orleans “How you doing?” I'd catch up with familiar faces I hadn't seen in awhile.
It wasn’t until I grew older that I began to internalize how organically clients and employees interact with one another. From the playful banter about each other’s wardrobe, to thought-provoking discussions about institutionalized racism and its effects on society, there has always been this underlying sense of comradery and respect for one another. Of course, everyone doesn’t get along all the time, but at the end of the day, they can all come together as one cohesive unit striving to improve their community.
However, things were not always this way.
According to "Collectors Weekly" writer Hunter Oatman-Stanford, predating the Civil War, many black-owned barbershops only served white customers such as politicians and businessmen. Stylists who catered to this type of discrimination became known as "color line barbers." While this type of treatment wasn’t fair, many barbers feared going against the grain would result in unemployment. Others figured they had much more on the line than just a job, (possibly all the black community has fought for) so they chose to cut their black clientele after closing time when their white counterparts were not around. This was a time when most barbers didn’t need formal training to practice their craft.
By the 1890s, everything changed when unions started imposing licensing laws on the cosmetology profession. Stanford says “This was part of a larger professionalization movement, the same moment that the American Bar Association was established to determine how one would become a lawyer and the American Medical Association was established to determine how one would become a doctor.”
Now, over a century later, that was arguably one of the best things that could have happened to black barbers. Not only because it required them to realize their unique ability to sustain themselves if they joined together in unison, but also because it gave birth to a unique space that helps preserve African-American culture which otherwise may not have happened.
As Hammond-based barber Darius Hall puts it, “today, the barbershop serves as a replacement for a ‘man cave.’ We go there to have free discussion with like-minded people who may be dealing with similar situations and it is refreshing [to know] you’ll leave there feeling like a new man,” Hall said.
In short – the barbershop is one of the few spaces that we as African-American men can be uniquely and unapologetically black. Whether that means listening to the smooth sounds of Sade on FM98, eating the gumbo we just bought from the “gumbo man” or indulging in a delicious sweet potato pie from the “pie lady,” all of these experiences make the trip downtown to get a haircut worthwhile.
So if you ever happen to stroll into a local barbershop, remember this one key rule: what happens in the shop stays in the shop.
