Photo by Yaasmeen Piper.
I learned a lot about life in the checkered walls of the barbershop: local politics, neighborhood gossip and what an “interception” was. Growing up, I watched my father and brother’s barber morph into therapist, teacher, even news anchor at times.
Reading material was always around, but, eventually, Candy Crush and Twitter seemed to replace magazines and newspapers. Harrisburg Councilman Cornelius Johnson believes it’s time to bring back the barbershop as a place both to get a haircut and learn a little something.
With the help of the American Literacy Corp. (ALC), children’s books for ages 2 to 12 are now shelved in 10 Harrisburg area barbershops. Begun in late May, the “Books In Barbershops” program means to return education to barbershops with a child-friendly environment that may help boost the literacy rate for young boys.
“The key concept I wanted to integrate was not just providing the bookshelves and the books, but to find appropriate barbershops where the barbers will support it—knowing to refer the kid to the books, and asking them reading comprehension questions,” Johnson said.
Johnson, who is a weekly customer at his barbershop, said some days he spends hours in the chair.
“I go once a week,” he said. “My barber’s never on time, so I’m spending about an hour and a half in there each time.”
He’s not alone. Some kids, maybe waiting for their father and brother, might spend a good two hours inside a barbershop.
“So [reading] keeps them engaged as far as keeping them out of ‘grown folks’ conversation,” he said. “While some of that conversation may be relevant to the kids, a lot of that conversation is for adult men. So, it’s good to have that space where they can grab a book and read.”
Originating in Harlem, the program was created by a nonprofit called Reading Holiday Project, which sought out barbershops because of their cultural influence on black men. According to the U.S Chamber of Commerce Foundation, only 18 percent of African–American fourth-graders are proficient in reading. For eighth-graders, that number drops to 16 percent.
“Young black boys are performing lower than anyone when it comes to literacy rates,” Johnson said. “I think it’s good to highlight and target them to get their performance rate up. Even though [black males] may be a target, that does not mean a female or anyone can’t come up and read a book. It’s for anyone to read, but [black males] continue to be our target audience because they are the ones who are sitting behind.”
Johnson blamed technology, socioeconomic stress and the absence of proper representation and diversity in children’s books for the decline in boys reading.
“You want to see yourself [when you are reading],” he said. “You want to build your imagination. It’s hard to build your imagination when you’re constantly looking at images that don’t look like you.”
Johnson and his team, which includes Brandon Flood, executive director of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus, Rob Lesher, director of the Dauphin County Library System, and others from salons and nonprofit organizations, set out to collect books that properly represented their audience. Some classics were thrown into the mix, such as “Charlotte’s Web,” “Goosebumps” and Johnson’s childhood favorite, “The Cat in the Hat.”
And the reading doesn’t have to end when the haircut is done. Kids are allowed to take their books with them and build a home library.
“When you’re reading to the kids, they ask you a lot of questions,” said Anthony Cuthbertson, owner of GQ II Barbershop in Penbrook. “It goes deep with me. My roots are in the community.”
Cuthbertson grew up in Hall Manor so, he said, understands the importance of giving back.
“A lot of people don’t understand the role that you play when you’re reading to someone,” he said. “You’re opening up a whole new world for them. You see their eyes booming. They can’t wait until you get to the next page.”
Johnson hopes that, in the years to come, he will be able to spread the program throughout the city and reach more young men.
When asked what message he had for young black boys, the answer seemed already to be on the tip of his tongue.
“Just keep reading,” he said. “We don’t realize the power in reading until it’s too late. Society is not too accepting of people who have low literacy rates.”
The “fundamental base” to life, Johnson said, is reading.
“It’s how you develop further knowledge,” he said. “If you don’t have the ability to read in today’s society, you have no place to advance.”
Find a Book
“Books in Barbershops” can be found at the following barbershops in the Harrisburg area:
Gifted Hands
1008 N. 3rd St.
Harrisburg
GQ2
2801 Penbrook Ave.
Harrisburg
Super Star Status
1925 Derry St.
Harrisburg
The Greatest Barber Shop in the World
145 N. Front St.
Steelton
I Am That I Am
1312 Derry St.
Harrisburg
Hair Design Plus Inc.
3031 Walnut St.
Harrisburg
Heads Up
2286 N. 6th St.
Harrisburg
Faded
6110 Derry St.
Harrisburg
Ebony 1
29 N. Front St.
Steelton
Steelton Hair
227 S. 6th St.
Steelton
Author: Yaasmeen Piper
