Ms. Anisa Parks, Co-owner and “problem solver” at Headliners NOLA conducts one-on-one interview with Sound Off Louisiana soon after the December 2, 2024 meeting of the Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology (LSBC).
With great fanfare, the Institute for Justice (IJ), a nonprofit headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, sued the LSBC on or around June 20, 2019.
IJ asserted that the LSBC violated Louisiana’s Constitution by imposing overly-restrictive licensing regulations entailing hair braiding, thus infringing on braiders’ rights to earn a living free of excessive and unnecessary governmental regulation.
The LSBC has, for a long time, required an “alternative hair permit” (i.e. a “braiding permit”), in order to legally braid hair in Louisiana. Obtaining the permit requires 500 hours of classroom instruction, whereas IJ has insisted that no classroom instruction whatsoever should be required to practice hair braiding in Louisiana.
The matter was litigated before 19th JDC Judge Wilson Fields. After IJ concluded the presentation of its evidence, the LSBC sought a Directed Verdict. Judge Fields indicated that IJ had, “failed to meet its burden of proof,” and granted the LSBC’s Motion for Directed Verdict dismissing the case at Plaintiff’s cost. IJ appealed to the First Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld Fields’ decision. On July 18, 2024, IJ posted the following video indicating how “really dumb” it asserts the LSBC’s regulation of hair braiders is and also announced its intent to file a Writ with the Louisiana Supreme Court over the matter:
7/18/24: IJ makes clear just how “really dumb” it contends LSBC’s “500 hours of ‘unrelated’ training” is, the fact that the regulation drives practitioners either, “elsewhere or underground,” and the fact that IJ intended to file a Writ with the Louisiana Supreme Court over the whole matter.
IJ did in fact file the Writ with the Louisiana Supreme Court; however, the Court declined the Writ application, and the LSBC celebrated that fact at its most-recent December 2, 2024 meeting. Let’s take a few seconds to see LSBC attorney Sheri Morris proclaim final victory for the LSBC at that meeting:
12/2/24: LSBC Attorney Sheri Morris devotes 23 seconds to her “attorney report” to inform LSBC Members of the Louisiana Supreme Court’s decision to deny IJ’s writ application.
Now, the last few LSBC meetings have been more than a little interesting because, for the first time, both aspiring hair braiders and longstanding hair braiders have been showing up at meetings and lamenting the LSBC practices just as IJ has been doing since 2019.
For a little review, it was just over three years ago that hair braider Wadvisha Chavis, who despite being so excited about the impending opening of her own hair braiding salon in Lake Charles, lamented the fact that the LSBC saddled her with the added cost of having to have a “manager” on site who possessed a full-blown cosmetology license (which requires 1,500 hours of training) in order for her to legally operate.
Chavis indicated then (just watch the video on the above-linked feature) that the added burden of what the LSBC required imperiled her very ability to have a hair braiding salon and provide for her children.
Well, Chavis appeared again at the December 2, 2024 meeting (three years after being so gleeful of opening her facility) and begged the LSBC for an, “apprenticeship program similar to that of barbers” so that aspiring hair braiders don’t have to endure what she did. She further indicated that, her glee over opening her braiding salon only three years before notwithstanding, she wound up having to close the salon down.
She also expressed interest in being able to teach in such an apprenticeship program, but she indicated that the LSBC has insisted that she has to, “complete the whole course again,” and she further indicated that such a requirement poses a problem for her because she is trying to raise “six kids” while the Board imposes these burdens upon her.
Ironically, LSBC attorney Morris informed the LSBC that the IJ litigation impeded the “previous Board’s” ability to become more accommodating of requests such as Chavis’. Here’s that video:
12/2/24: Chavis indicates all of the hardships that the LSBC imposes upon her and other similarly-situated aspiring hair braiders even as Board attorney Morris blames IJ and the then-pending litigation for causing the previous Board not to feel comfortable moving forward with such initiatives as a result of the “pending litigation.”
This is just our observation. The present LSBC is now sensing that the historical stand of the LSBC, and we are certainly in a position to be knowledgeable of that stand given that we’ve attended and filmed dozens of meetings, is becoming increasingly unpopular among aspiring hair braiders! Why? Because that historical stand is flat-out blocking their abilities to earn livings in their chosen and loved profession. Ironically, that is precisely what IJ asserted in its litigation and, to us at least, it appears the present LSBC may be willing to use both IJ and the “previous Board” as scapegoats for the LSBC’s historical stiff resistance to any loosening of the regulations of hair braiders whatsoever!
It hasn’t been just Chavis who has shown up at meetings recently to voice sentiments entailing LSBC’s hair braiding regulation. Ms. Anisa Parks, Co-owner and “problem solver” at Headliners NOLA, has attended numerous LSBC meetings, and she has spoken up at the last couple of meetings. In fact, at the LSBC meeting of November 4, 2024, Parks reinforced sentiments expressed by hair replacement specialist “Ms. Nancy” who is with Hair Styles Unlimited in Kenner about the LSBC making life difficult unnecessarily and thereby forcing practitioners to, “operate from their garages.” Let’s take a look at the November, 2024 commentary of both Ms. Nancy and Ms. Parks:
11/4/24: Ms. Nancy & Ms. Parks vent frustrations about practitioners feeling compelled to take their operations, “into their garages.”
We also asked Ms. Parks if she would mind a one-on-one interview after the December 2, 2024 meeting, and she graciously accepted our invitation. Let’s take a look at that video:
12/2/24: Ms. Anisa Parks, Co-owner and “problem solver” at Headliners NOLA, conducts one-on-one interview with Sound Off Louisiana soon after the 12/2/24 Cosmetology Board meeting.
Ms. Parks reached out to us after our interview and indicated that there were more details she would have liked to have stated on the above video. We told her that we would be more than happy to incorporate the additional statements she wished to make in this feature, so we’re going to supply that additional commentary from her at this time:
Dear Robert,
I wanted to extend my sincere gratitude for giving me the platform to voice my opinion about “Alternative Hair Design” on Sound Off Louisiana. The opportunity to discuss this important topic means a great deal to me and our business as we move forward, and I appreciate the space you’ve created for open and meaningful dialogue.
The one thing I did not voice in our video is that I favor standardization in Alternative Hair Design. It is essential for ensuring quality and professionalism in our industry. However, I firmly believe that these standards must be paired with experienced educators who truly understand the nuances of the craft. Without educators who have hands-on expertise and a deep connection to the communities they serve, any efforts at standardization risk falling short of their full potential.
Thank you again for facilitating this important conversation. Your support in amplifying voices within our community is valuable, and I look forward to continuing to engage with you on issues that impact this industry.
Best regards,
Headliners NOLA Salon
“Help us build our future – one loc at a time.”
We want to again extend our appreciation to Ms. Parks for her incredibly insightful input into all aspects of alternative hair design (i.e. braiding and locs).
We are going to have far more to report on developments at the LSBC but, rather than make this particular feature too lengthy, we’re deferring that material for later dates. Nevertheless, it’s material we know you won’t want to miss!