Styling frizzy hair turns out to be a real headache in Quebec. The science of this delicate and versatile hair is not taught in any public school, although nearly half a million Quebecers have this type of scalp. A more inclusive reform of the DEP in hairdressing should see the light of day shortly. Until then, hairdressers are struggling to take control of their legacy.
In her Quebec salon, Mwamini Ntabyo has seen all kinds of hair disasters land on her chair. From unkempt hairstyles to painful braids. “It’s so serious that it plays on people’s heads. Some say: “I shave everything!” »
Very few salons outside of Montreal comb these frizzy locks. Professional studies training barely addresses “very curly” hair. There are still some specialized salons, since anyone can become a hairdresser in Quebec: here, the government does not require any license from hairdressers, unlike Ontario or France. It is by looking older than themselves that many, like Mwamini, have learned their skills. “Before, it was an aunt who took care of that to survive. Today, young people want better,” she says
The previous hairdressing training update was over 20 years ago. Its rewrite will not be completed this year, according to people involved interviewed by The duty ; it will arrive at best in 2025.
Some private training courses — online or in English — offer refresher courses. Sess Elusma, aka Miss LadyBlu, is among the pioneers of these alternative academies. The lack of black hairdressers “is a problem everywhere,” she assures in her Montreal salon. Self-taught “on dolls from Haiti,” she perfected her art in Atlanta. “We’re barely touching on” the Afro style here, according to her. “It takes a different approach, an international approach. »
A gradient of gradients
Salvatore Falci, a hairdresser with 28 years of experience, is on his third version of the program. Having seen the content of the next one, “it’s really encouraging”. The art of very curly hair will be discussed. The absence of suitable hair care is “very blatant” in Montreal, confirms this former teacher at the Pointe-de-l’Île School Service Center.
Now a teacher in the region, at the 24-Juin Center in Sherbrooke, he feels the unease rising throughout the region. He combs through the origins of his new students and notes that between very curly African hair and very straight Asian hair, a whole range of curls must be covered in the new course. “Everyone is going to be there. » In any case, the teachers are already “slipping a little” to enrich their lessons. Expectations are high within the profession, he assures. “We are open to new techniques. We’re going to have fun! »
However, straight hair still predominates in Quebec. Without a critical mass of black clients in several cities or towns, many hairdressers are hesitant to detangle African hair due to lack of practice. “People with afro hair go to afro salons. There is no mixture, it seems,” says Stéphane Roy, president of the Association Coiffure Québec and owner of a salon in the Montreal district of Ahuntsic.
“Obviously, someone with extremely curly hair wants it to look good and he puts all the odds on his side. »
The legacy of frizzy hair
In Quebec, “if there could be a training establishment for [les cheveux afros], it would be full,” says Mwamini Ntabyo. Passionate about this hair, she created a temporary exhibition about it in the national capital.
Too preoccupied with simple hair care, many members of the black communities persist in excessive caution to the detriment of style, the young hairdresser laments a little. “We often do the same braids because we protect the hair. And we’ve been doing this forever. »
Bantu, vanilla or layered braids: African hair offers a lot of potential, she says, without forgetting extensions and dyes. But don’t go asking this natural hair activist to straighten very curly hair.
“Just doing the trendy hairstyle is missing out on the heritage,” she gently complains. “We have a part of heritage that we don’t dare try. When others try hairstyles, we get angry and start shouting. But we let [ces coiffures] in the closet ! It’s because of smooth people trying that certain styles come back. »
Winter and toques certainly complicate three-dimensional fantasies, although “you can have a winter hairstyle and a summer hairstyle”.
Trained or not, hairdressers have been working professionally with African hair since at least 1870 in Quebec. John Williams, himself of Afro-descendant, opened a salon that year in the Montcalm headquarters, the oldest domestic building in the capital.
This report is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.