by
Portia
When Bianca Dawkins, 24, called the Denny Kemp Salon and Spa I Minneapolis to make her appointment, she was very clear about what kind of hair the stylists would be working with. She told the receptionist that her hair was textured with very tight curls. She even gave a warning that it would probably take the stylist at least 2 hours to style her hair. After 18 months of being natural, Dawkins was ready for a change and wanted a simple wash, blow-dry, and flat iron.
However, when Dawkins arrived at Denny Kemp Salon and Spa, a stylist, Justin, grabbed a fist full of hair and told her that it was “an animal that can’t be tamed”. After Justin summoned a few other stylists to look at Dawkins’ natural hair, they collectively decided that none were prepared to style her mane. The stylist even told her that “it isn’t the 1950s or 60s, where we can just put a sign in the window,” when she asked if black girls could come to the salon and get their hair done. Dawkins likened that statement to Justin wishing that the salon could segregate its clients.
After being insulted three times too many, Dawkins left the salon and took to Facebook to vent her frustrations. She then gave an interview for CityPages.com and explained how hurt and humiliated she was regarding the whole ordeal.
“In that moment, I was having my identity attacked.”
“I couldn’t believe what was happening. I just put my head down and walked out.”- Bianca Dawkins – CityPages.com
When owner, Denny Kemp, caught wind of what was happening behind his brand, he reached out to Dawkins and offered a free spa day. It was too late, Dawkins wanted no parts of the offer. Considering that he only tried to rectify the situation after the media published Dawkins’ story, I can understand.
To Dawkins, the issue was that one person’s job wasn’t on the line: the stylist who’d offended her so deeply. She was informed that the man would keep his job, and wasn’t subject to “disciplinary action,” as Dawkins had hoped. She also wanted the spa to pursue cultural competency training and to “identify clear gaps in their services to people of color.” – CityPages.com
Dawkins story quickly went viral over the week. The salon issued a lengthy statement and admitted that they were in the wrong. Kemp also told his side of the story and admitted that his salon needs to become more versatile when it comes to styling different textures of hair. He’s hoping that Justin and his staff will learn from this incident and he’s even going to implement a cultural change at his salon based on Dawkins’ suggestions. Apparently, the two were finally able to talk about the matter, but Dawkins implied on her Facebook page that the conversation didn’t happen as Kemp is portrayed to the media.
In the article, it states that the salon only had one stylist that was capable of caring for Dawkins’ natural hair and she was off the day of her appointment. Sadly, Dawkins story is a tale that millions of black women could tell over and over again. Personally, I’ve had similar experiences with my hair at salons, which is why I learned how to do my own. I was once told that my hair was “too natural” while sitting in a salon chair. I was also told that a “light perm” would resolve my hair “issues”. When will salons realize that what comes out of your mouth regarding a client, is just as important as servicing that client? Hopefully, Denny Kemp Salon and Spa truly does try to change the way they see black women and their hair. It may be a small drop in the bucket, but at least it’s a start.
