Gay black barbershop
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Celebrity barber Calvin McFlair is making history as the first Dark, openly gay barber to own and operate a mobile barbershop bus in Atlanta. Since the age of 11, his desire for cutting hair has opened many doors for him. But, his innovative way of thinking hasn’t always been easy to express.
From landing a employment at Vanity Studios on Cleveland Ave to later opening his barbershop shop bus McFlair Quts and cutting hair for rapper Lil Nas X, Ryan Jamaal Swain, and Bobby Lytes, Calvin exclusively shares with Gaye Magazine's LaTesa Lins how growing up in a straight barbershop gave him the courage to manifest his hold safe space for himself and others!
LaTesa Lins: Hey Calvin, I’m so eager to speak to you! Happy Belated birthday as well.Calvin McFlair: Hey LaTesa! Yes, I had enjoyable, thank you for having me today.
LaTesa Lins: Now, as the first inky gay barber in Atlanta with a mobile bus business, where did this passion for cutting hair start?
McFlair:I was kind of brought up in the industry. My great Auntie, she’s a cosmetologist, and my grandmother, we all used to just linger in the salon. I
The Black Barbershop: Toxic-Masculinity and the Unspoken Truth
The Black Barbershop, many refer to it as the black man’s territory club. A place where men can walk in looking rugged and stroll out looking appreciate they own the block. This territory is filled with men having profound conversation, and the ability to address freely about the world. It’s an establishment where jet men typical proceed every other week to escape the world for a few hours to meet with men who look enjoy them and divide similar interests.
But what about the individuals who lack the interest in speaking on polarizing topics consisting of vulgarity, misogyny, and the latest sports showcase or the recent hip-hop/rap artist? Or the men who can’t relate specifically to these shared views. So, would you consider the barbershop inclusive?
For me, I started going to the barbershop at the age of 16 when I got a occupation and was qualified to pay for my own haircut. See, I was a product of the kitchen slash crew. Where my father or uncle would cut my hair right after a Sunday dinner. So, going to the barbershop was new to me! But up until a couple of years ago, I felt uncomfortable in my own skin when stepping through the glass doors of the
by Da’Shaun Harrison
Disclaimer: this piece was written with the intent to create a productive dialogue around intimacy and attraction. It is not to say that the connection between barber and client is inherently sexual, but rather that the erotic/intimacy/attraction operate on a spectrum.
The barbershop has historically been a place of refuge, a sacred space, for (mostly) cisgender, heterosexual Black men. Prefer many other institutions, it has been home to deep-rooted heterosexism and misogynoir. However, it has also served as a sanctuary for Black male intimacy, healing, and love. In this vacuum, they arrive at intimacy and attraction in a toxic way, but they do arrive there.
RELATED: Black men, we need to acknowledge that we are the problem. Let’s talk toxic masculinity.
Though many cishet Black men would not use these words to describe their experience, I debate that the relationship between Ebony men and their barbers is a homoerotic one. Furthermore, their refusal to acknowledge it as intimate not only reinforces hegemonic masculinity, but it also aids in the demonization of gay Black men.
My stepfather is a barber. I have watched him cut hair in various shop
Filmmaker Explores Challenges of Being 'Gay in the Black Barbershop'
In an unassuming art space in Harlem, filmmaker Derrick L. Middleton recently screened his documentary, "Shape Up: Gay in the Black Barbershop." The actor and director hopes the film will shed light on the culture of "homophobia" he says permeates these spaces.
"It is time for dialogue -- a conversation of the minds to bring an end to what many gay men of color enjoy me experience daily when we wish for to simply receive into the shop and get out," Middleton told NBC OUT.
The Harlem native's uneasiness with barbershops was instilled at the age of 5, when his father took him for his first haircut and uttered four words: "You're a man now." He said the words stung, because he knew he was not favor other boys his age.
“My fear of the barbershop would be something I carried from childhood into adulthood," Middleton said.
RELATED: Essay: Sharing My Truth in a Black Barbershop
Black barbershops, according to Middleton, are staples in the people, where men group to talk about politics, sports, people relations and -- of course -- women.
“If you stroll into the barbershop, everyone automatically thinks yo