Trades and professions are passed down through generations. Mike is not the only barber I interviewed who took charge of their family’s business. Mike describes that his mother forced him to become a barber. However, inheriting the family trade isn’t necessarily a bad thing, especially in the context on the Black community. Mike Frazier’s motherwas a black, female business owner during the peak of America’s Jim Crow era. Even against the odds of institutionalized racism, she managed a private business for over sixty years. Ms. Frazier decided to set a strong financial and professional foundationfor Mike in a world that continues to be disadvantageous to Black people. I understood why Mike’s mother pressured him to take charge of her family business. Like him, I am also the son of a private business owner. However, our experiences differed when it came to our parents’ influences on our career choices. Consequentially, this is a product of the generational gap between Mike and myself. My parents encouraged me to pursue whichever career I wanted. Mike Frazier’s career trajectory was the product of the times he lived in. According to Mike, his mother pushed him into the hair industry with little choice. I think that Ms. Frazier did what many family-owned businesses do. While almost guaranteeing a future for her son in the hair industry, Ms. Frazier effectively groomed Mike to inherit her Black institution. Black institutions are cultural spaces which contribute the mental, physical, economic, and spiritual betterment of Black communities. Mike gave his response to my definition.

How would you define barbershops as Black Institutions?

Barbershops are like churches. It’s not always peaches and cream though, because barbershops are like churches and liquor stores. There’s one on every corner. Especially in minority neighborhoods, you’re gonna find corner stores, churches, and barbershops. That’s just the reality. But the barbershop is the most consistent. Imagine there’s a kid who goes to the same barber every two weeks. That same kid is going to continue going to that shop, even after he graduates, gets a career, and starts a family. Once he has kids, he’s going to bring his kids to them. There are customers here who build generations at the same barbershop. For example, this young man.(Mike points at a man approaching him with a five-dollar bill). This man has been coming here since he was seven years old. He is twenty-one now.

Mike described how generational succession leads to the sustainability of Black barbershops. When the young man approached us during the interview, Mike was explaining the major differences that he sees in Black barbershops and franchise shops. One of the key distinctions that Mike acknowledged was the loyalty that Black men have to their barbershops. Even though black barbershops are similar in many ways, Black men are more likely to return to the same barber every two weeks. Black barbershops are not interchangeable to most Black men. Just like the twenty-one-year-old man who’s been visiting Frazier’s barbershop for thirteen years, Black men choose their barbershops based on a range of contributing factors.Location, price, and overall accessibility are basic criteria that factor into the decision-making process. In addition to logistical advantages, there are tangible and intangible characteristics of Black barbershops. I indulged Mike on the distinguishing attributes of barbershops in Black communities.

What are some of the key differences that you’ve noticed between Black barbershops and franchise shops like Supercuts and Sports Clips? Why do Black men continue to come back?  

I have nothing against Supercuts, and I ain’t got nothing against Sports Clips. But they do not connect with the Black community, at all. Here is why.

I like a little roughness and edge. To me, these franchise shops are so plastic. They are so…. Vanilla! First of all, I don’t believe that many of the people who work there are fully trained. You’ll go in there and get your head whacked! I’ve seen fellas come running straight to my shop after leaving a franchise, all jacked up! The ambiance and the atmosphere are the biggest differences. These components are more important in the Black community. If Black people do not feel comfortable coming to a shop, they will not return. Franchise barbershops are strictly business. There are no conversations, and if there are any, the barber is steadily trying to upcharge your haircut, for added stuff that you really don’t need! For example, you might walk in expecting to spend twelve-dollars, but by the time you leave, you might be out of forty-five dollars. Most Black barbershops are upfront about prices. For these shops, the bottom line is the profit! Screw anything else, right? And honestly, it works for them. It makes a lot of business sense.

The purpose of any business is to make money. However, you gotta have that medium. A franchise barber may cut one head for an average of maybe, twenty-five. I might make a total twenty-five dollars from two heads instead of just one. But I can guarantee that I’m gonna have two more customers right after that. Sooner or later, my twos will overtake the ones. The twos are gonna come back, and they might bring a three or a four. So, I don’t use my prices as a record of my success. My profit is the clients. think of it in Walmart terms. Buy a lot of it and sell it as cheap as you can! They may make their profit end cap from high priced haircuts once a week, while I reach my end cap every day of the week. I keep my prices low, and my clientele high. Here, each cut costs only four-dollars. And I make a helluva profit. 

According to Mike, franchise barbershops lack the cultural and environmental qualities that attract Black customers. Black barbershops prioritize relationships over net profit. The barbers who operate Black shops create a familiar atmosphere for their customers to feel connected. Almost every Black barbershop has its own version of afro-fengshui, and the atmosphere is created from multiple aspects ranging from the owner’s selection of music, displayed art and photography, and the conversations amongst the barbers and their customers. It’s not uncommon to see portraits of Malcolm X while listening to Black musicians ranging from Babyface to NWA.

These variables often depend on the owner’s preferences. Black barbershops are also conscious about the socio-economic breakdown of the surrounding neighborhood. Frazier’s Barber College fosters its relationship to the community by providing affordable haircuts to the surrounding low-income neighborhood. Most schools offer below market rates because the haircuts they are providing are from barbers who are still training. However, four dollars are rates worth paying attention to. Most barber colleges that I’ve visited for cheap service were priced between seven to ten dollars. With his low-cost haircuts, students at Frazier’s Barber College never lack the amount of practice they require to complete their certification program. Mike’s business makes a profit from the volume of his clientele, and that frequency of customer loyalty leads to sponsoring a personal relationship with his customers.

Like many barbers, Mike is more than just a hair cutter. He serves his community by sponsoring an affordable service to his customers, and this enables his students to create a lengthy network of clients. This work extends beyond the fact that Mike’s haircuts are cheap. For example, a simple $4 haircut could be the first step of job interview preparation for unemployed Black men in the community. Students attending Jack Yates high school could afford a four-dollar haircut at Frazier’s and be groomed for their high school prom or graduation pictures. Single mothers can afford haircuts for their sons. Most importantly, student barbers can build a healthy network of references and customers from their experience at Frazier’s Barber College.

I’d like to think of you as the dean of Frazier’s Barber College. You create the curriculum, and you also coach students on how to be successful in this industry. You also manage the daily business operations. However, what do you say your role is here?

Really, I’m a coach, manager, teacher, mentor, and everything else for my business.Once I find talent, I have to develop that talent. And once I developed that talent, I have to make sure that they are headed in the right direction. I don’t want to set my students up for failure. If a student gives me a year of their time and effort, I can guarantee them a career.

Your college could be compared to a minor league baseball farm system. You’re managing a pool of talent in hopes of creating future business owners in the big leagues, aka the hair industry. I’m sure your job comes with many ups and downs when it comes to the overall results of each student’s effort over their nine-month program. Could you elaborate on the difficulty of managing talent in your college? What are some of your frustrations? 

Yes! Of course. To me, it’s a letdown when I try to save a student from their old ways, and they go back to the streets. Everyone has potential. This is a very professional and lucrative business, and Iwant my students to embrace that. But if a student will not give me their all, then I’m not going to go above and beyond to help them. I will not go beyond the call of duty for a student who does not want to learn! I’m here for the people who really want to be the best that they can be. I have to! I treat every student here like they’re grown. You have to make the decision of who you want to be.

As a teacher, I can be your best friend, or your worst enemy. If you want to make it, I am going to make sure you make it! But I have no time to waste. So, I leave it up to them. I don’t make no decisions, and I don’t make no prejudgments. Everyone I that I teach comes to me as a blank slate.I’ve had students who had a natural gift for barbering. But if they’re not clicking, and if they don’t have the drive, I don’t spend my efforts on them even if they’re the most talented. . I ask them “what do YOU want to do!” And you’d be surprised at how many people that cannot answer that question.Once a student graduates from your program, they officially become professional haircutters.

However, I think that we can agree that this industry requires more than just hair cutting skills. In Black barbershops, what are some of the additional key skills that barbers need in order to be successful in such a competitive industry?  As a barber, not only do you have to take care of you customer’s looks, but you gotta be the sounding board for them when nobody wants to listen to them. You gotta be their marriage counselor, their proprietor, and sometimes their legal advisor! You might be saying ‘Lord I can’t wait to be finished with cutting this guy’s hair! This dude comes in here talking about the same thing every week!’ But you still gotta do it though.To the customer, this makes all the difference. Somebody has taken time out of their busy day, to listen to them.

People tell barbers things that they don’t tell their wives. People will tell their barbers what they would never tell their lawyers, or their psychiatrist, or even their doctor! My customers will do anything I want, of course if it’s legal. It’s the relationship I have with them that makes this so. Forty percent of the time, you will connect with your barber, not based on the way that they cut, but how they are as an individual. Your barber might not be an excellent cut, but you like their company, so you kick it with them once a week at the shop. That’s what’s missing at Supercuts, Fantastic Sam’s, and Sport Clips. The camaraderie, the connection that you have with your barber, are what franchises lack. They’re in it for the commission. It’s just like that.

It seems like your business model is aware of the socio-economic status of its market. Do you believe that you can keep up this model while staying competitive with other barbershops?

Black men want to look good, on one hand. On the other hand, we want to look good at the cheapest way possible! We aren’t gonna spend fifty dollars on a haircut like the downtown people do. Not too many people can afford that in the Black community. In the Black community, you have to readjust and reposition yourself. You still want to provide a good service, but at a reasonable price. One flaw that I see in the Black community barbershops is the late-night charges. For example, a barbershop could be providing seven-dollar haircuts from 7:00 am-6:00 pm. But for some reason, some barbers charge twenty-five dollars per haircut after 7:00 pm. Here’s my problem with it. Do the haircuts get better after 7:00pm for them to be charging twenty-five dollars? Do you cut better after seven o’clock?

Is this because barbers are finding ways to increase their earnings? It seems like a smart business model to me. Couldn’t they be capitalizing on the late-night scene and the people who need last minute haircuts? What’s wrong with that?

“Why take advantage of people like that? It’s usually the same person who comes to your shop during normal business hours. Let’s say he got off from work later than usual. Are you really going to charge that same guy quadruples the price for the same haircut? Justify that for me! You can give me eight-million explanations on how this make sense, and I still won’t be convinced. The barber decides whether they want to stay after hours, not the customers, so why charge extra? It’s not right, it’s not fair, and I don’t like it! The only way I could justify a system like this if it were the holidays. Maybe like Christmas eve or something. But I shouldn’t be coming home with a bonus every night!”

It sounds like you’re taking a strong ethical stance against late night cuts. Don’t you think that many barbers would disagree with your position?

And you can put this on the record too. Yes. To me it’s morally wrong to charge a person two different prices on the same product. And the only reason you charge them is because it’s after hours. To be honest with you, after normal hours, I’m at home with my family. I ain’t trying to be here during that time.Black barbershops are about consistency! I’m seeing the same customers every week. You see, them white boys, and I mean this in the least derogatory way, get their haircuts once a month. Sometimes once every two months! I bet you get your haircut every one to two weeks, right? So if I’m going to see you every week, I’m gonna do you right! I don’t care what time it is. Barbers who charge after hours costs are bleeders. I’d rather catch my customer on another day than charge him extra for the same cut.

Mike made his thoughts clear about the late-night fee that some Black barbershops are utilizing. Many Black barbershops charge extra after a certain hour to make a profit on the evening crowd. Men may come to barbershops before going out to nightclubs and bars. Someone may even stepinto a barbershop to get a fresh cut right before going on their 8:00 pm dinner date. In Mike’s perspective, the late-night barbershop market undermines the social responsibility that barbers have in their community.

Mike mentioned that the ambiance and atmosphere of Black barbershops contribute to their success in the Black community. Black barbershops are conversational hubs which encourage discourse amongst the clients and employees. Often uncensored, this environment becomes a hotbed for debate between Black men, and it provides a safe space for this discourse to occur. Barbershops are meeting grounds where Black men are unafraid to express their opinions on any given topic. Barbers often act as mediators to maintain order amongst the chatter, but it is not uncommon for them to engage in debates as well. Frazier’s Barber College operates as a fully functioning barbershop, so conversations are embedded into the daily operations of its atmosphere. Even though conversations are a common theme amongst Black barbershops, each shop has its own rules and regulations. Some shop owners implement ethical behavior among their junior barbers tocontrol the environment. This will be discussed more throughout the course of this paper. As a grizzled veteran of barbershop climate control, Mike has established his own set of regulations at his college. He constantly monitorsthe conversations in his shop in order to minimize hostility, which could possibly lead to physical violence if left unchecked.

We both know that barbershops are places where primarily Black men have the most agency to chatter. Is this any different in barber colleges? What types of guidelines do you implement here?

There are no big differences in the types of conversations in barbershops in comparison to barber colleges. However, there are three types of topics that you must always be cautious with. These topics are politics, religion, and sports. There are people who will kill you behind all of these topics! I’m not saying that people can’t discuss those topics here, but you must do it in a way that does not infringe upon another’s beliefs. Because you can’t stop a person from expressing themselves. 

There are tricks in the trade that you can learn in this industryto avoid verbal conflicts. A good barber knows how to control the tempo of his shop. For example, if there’s too much cursing going on, the barber can say, ‘let’s tone the cussing down,’ to stop it from getting out of hand. However, if the barber is initiating hostility, the customers will follow.We also have all types of different characters who come to the barbershops. 

You have to realize that a barbershop is a welcoming place. So you’re gonna pick up people off the streets. So it all depends on how a person acts or behaves in the barbershop, because everyone here deserves an equal amount of respect. Treat the barbershop like it’s your house. If a stranger comes knocking at your door, it is up to them to decide how they will act.

The Black Eye on Barbershops 

The conversation I had with Mike helped me to view Black barbershops more dualistically. These safe havens for Black men are not only awesome hubs of community dialogue, but theyare managed by imperfect human beings. Mike said earlier in the interview that it’s not always “peaches and cream” to run a barbershop. He’s seen many potential talented barbers fall short of their intended purpose, succumbing to the influences that they came to Frazier’s trying to escape. For many some Black people in this industry, obtaining their barber license is their last chance. Barbershops have historically provided an outlet for Black people who lack institutional and financial advantages to go tocollege. Some barbers are former addicts, felons, and high school dropouts who decided to pursue the hair industry for financial stability. For customers, Black barbershops are often the only places that will allow for them to feel value. Barbers are the psychologist for Black people. They are consistently tasked with listening to their customers, and their customers leave the doors with a revived feeling of emotional confidence through their appearance. However, Mike shared with me a less grandiose era ofThird Ward’s barbershops. This was an epidemic during the 1980s and 1990s that swept through Black communities nationwide. Mike calls this era, the “Black Eye of Black barbershops.“

How much did the crack-cocaine epidemic impact Black barbershops and their surrounding communities? 

The barbering industry took a Black Eye in the 1980s and 1990s, and it’s still recovering from it till this very day. This was when the crack-cocaine and drugs began pouring into the Black community. A lot of Black men, of sound body and mind, began to gravitate towards that industry. A lot of barbers tried to take advantage of their professions through the drug trade. What is the easiest way to move an illegal product? Simple. You set up a barbershop.

During the 1980s and early1990s, there were a lot of cover-up shops populating Black neighborhoods. There were barbershops that weren’t actual barbershops, and barbers who weren’t actual barbers.Like I said before, the barbering industry took a big Black Eye, and we’re still trying to recover from it.

Before drugs hit the scene, Black neighborhoods would have just about one or two shops open or close within five years’ time spans. When that dope hit the community, there would be fifteen to twenty shops opening in a month. But at the same time, twice as many shops would close because of police stings and drug busts. Some shops would lose business because they had too much illicit traffic, and actual customers would leave. We are just now getting back to our roots right now in the twenty-first century! We’re just now coming back to being a more respectable business. Dope really was the king back then!

Black barbershops continue to play a pivotal role in the lives of African-American men, but these institutions experienced a dreadful rough patch during the 1980s and 1990s. The crack-cocaine epidemic laid a devastating assault on African-American communities during this era. During this period, Black men were not only the most at risk for addiction, but the number of homicides and drugarrests were significantly affected this demographic. The disparate effect of crack-cocaine against communities of color was detailed in a paper written by various scholars from Harvard and University of Chicago Measuring Crack Cocaine and Its Impact was a 2007 research project on crack’s blow in major American cities between 1985 and 2000. According to their index, Houston fell within the middle of the pack between the major coastal cities like New York, Boston, and San Francisco.

Not only do these institutions offer a second chance to Black men, but barbershops are continuing to reconcile with their communities. Barbers found themselves pitted in a total war against a disease which swept the nation. As middle class Black business owners, barbers have historically been adaptable enough to pivot against trends in the economy and societal disadvantages. African-American communities were shoved to the brink, without a single wall behind their backs to catch them. The Reagan and Bush administrations didn’t do too many favors for Black people as social welfare and community health programs were subjected to budget cuts. MIT political scientist, Sheldon Danziger, co-wrote an article on how cuts to programs like Medicaid and Food Stamps impacted low-income communities of color.

“Because a higher proportion of blacks are poor than whites, a greater proportion will be affected by the reductions in transfers. Furthermore, since 55% of the net employment increase for blacks has occurred in the public sector, and much of that in social welfare programs, reductions in these programs will cause a higher percentage of blacks than whites to lose their jobs.” Contextualizing this epidemic helps us to understand why drug trade was so attractive. Crack not only provided a psychological escape from their disparate realities, but it was also a lucrative market to be involved in.

This segment of our interview was tough for me to process. I was too young during the time in which this era ravaged my community, so my recollection of its effects never resonated with me until I this conversation with Mike. Barbers were more influential to me thanpreachers and teachers during my childhood. I almost felt violated listening to about how Black barbershops were used to cover up drug holes. Of course, not all barbers were involved in the crack-cocaine trade, but I felt like my childhood heroes were suddenly being painted as villain. In order to gain more context, I asked for Mike to continue giving his assessment of the Black Eye era.

How did you respond to this epidemic? Did it affect your business? 

During that time, crack cocaine just started hitting the streets. It was something new. Fortunately, I saw it coming, so I never messed with it. But when that crack hit the community, it rippled through barbershops like a wildfire! When you’re on those types of drugs, the last thing that you will worry about is looking good. That’s the last priority! So, the grooming businesses dropped off by about fifty to sixty percent in earnings. It really did a number on us. We ate our lunch!When I had a shop, I lost about sixty-percent of my business.

There were a lot of barbers on drugs, and so many customers on them too! People that you would never think of. I’ve cut police officers, judges, doctors, a couple of brain surgeons, all on crack-cocaine. I done had school teachers, administrators, principals, all on crack-cocaine. I had Shell executives, corporate folks; all of these people were my customers and messed with dope. You were born after this was going on. So you’re only hearing stories about it, and maybe you’ve seen movies about it like New Jack City. It was some potent stuff back then. Once you tried crack, you were hooked. If you take that one hit, you’re done. One hit and, boom! You’re outta there!

Did dope ruin some of the endearing qualities of barbershops that we discussed earlier? How was the barbershop’s communal value impacted by the crack-cocaine wave?

Yes! Dope ruined the barbershop in more ways than just business. How could a barber mentor someone if they’re on dope? How can the barber tell you not to do dope, but smokes crack once the shop as soon as the shop closes up? Everything becomes wrapped around that. You stop paying your light bill. You stop paying your rent. It hurts your work life because you start showing up late. You’ll stay at work for ten to fifteen minutes, and as soon as you make fifteen or twenty dollars cutting a couple of heads, you’re out the door! Barbershops took a beating from that. Mothers and fathers did not want to bring their children to the barbershop, especially if they knew they were drug infested. Customers would have to leave the community just to get a haircut or cut their heads themselves. They were lucky if they knew any trusted barber, like me, who wasn’t on that stuff.

During this time, a lot of struggling barbershops became successful during that time because the successful barbershops were all tied up in that dopegame.Customers still needed to go somewhere. You may be able to cut my hair today, but what do you do when you’re off? The barber becomes unreliable. Customers would ask “hey, so is my barber in today? It’s been like three weeks since I’ve seen him.” And the other barbers would have to explain, saying, “yea he’s still here, but he’s in and out most of the time.” When you’re on those drugs, your appearance starts to change. Your sense of urgency and priorities change. Nothing is important to you but that dope.

Do you personally know any barbers who were able to overcome an addiction to drugs? 

I do but very few. Being fifty-four years old, and a barber for forty years, I can probably count them on one hand. Just one hand. This is out of the dozens of addictbarbers that I knew.

For the dope dealers, crack-cocaine gave them a feeling of power. It gave them a sense of being “somebody!” But that’s selfish, because yes, they are a somebody. But a somebody who is destroying their own neighborhood! Some drug dealers believe that they are faucets to their communities, but they’re actually drains. They’re leeches! People who operate within that selfish mode are the most dangerous.

Mike’s explanation of the crack cocaine epidemic shows a more complicated view of the impact of drugs in the Black community. The idea of lawyers, doctors, and oil & gas industry executives being crack addicts diverts from the common narrative of visible addiction. Most strikingly to me, Black barbershops during the 1980s and 1990s lost their credibility in their communities. Today, Black barbershops are not as dismal as described by Mike during the 1980s and 1990s.

However, I do believe that the crack-cocaine wave is a traumatic event that Black barbershops and communities are continuing to reconcile with. Third Ward was impacted by this epidemic, and Black barbershops and communities are going through a nationwide detox. Black barbershops cannot be held solely responsible for the crack-cocaine epidemic, yet they are continuing to reconcile with the Black community. The catalyst for the decline of this epidemic remains unclear.

In your opinion, when did the crack cocaine era lose momentum in Black barbershops. How did the decline occur?

Like all things, it had its time. The pendulum is always gonna swing up! But guess what? It’s always gotta come down. I think the pendulum is coming back on the upswing, and here is why. When crack was king, it was on the downswing. It affected every neighborhood, every racial community, and every economic division. It showed no prejudice!

But your generation is on the upswing because now, heroin is making a comeback along with opioids. Now you’re old enough to see it. You had no idea what the hell crack was growing up? Today, you won’t see too many crackheads, and the only ones left are “functioning crackheads.” These are basically the people who can’t function unless they’re on crack. In the 80s, if ten people were in the barbershop, at least eight of them was on crack. Your generation is faced with a different drug, but the same epidemic. 

I think we were able to get off of crack through education. And when I say “education,” I mean common sense. If I see you touching a hot pot, and it burns you, I’m not gonna go behind you and touch it too. You understand? That was the only way it cycled out. I would say that the mid-late 90s was really when crack-cocaine lost traction. People sought treatment. But now, you could get addicted to opioids from just popping a pill! That’s going to be the battle of your generation. That’s yall’s crack!

Frazier’s Barber College is an institution that enables opportunities for redemption and economic success. During my research efforts, I’ve met and interviewed several alumni from the college. Most of them had the same description of Mike. “Yea, he’s something else,” or “Mike tells it how it is,” have been the most frequented phrases to describe Mike’s style. The crack-cocaine era inflicted a devastating black eye on barbershops in the Black community. In addition to providing relief to the wound, Frazier’s Barber College is working to equip its students to resist the next drug epidemic.