Beauty fix: Hairstylists now trained in helping domestic abuse victims

Hairstylists attend a training course on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault during the America’s Beauty Show in Chicago, Illinois, United States, on March 25, 2017. Source: Reuters/John Gress.

At the session, trainers taught the students a sudden change in demeanour, a reluctance to put on a robe at a spa or tales of repeated insults from a spouse could signal an unhealthy and even dangerous relationship.

If hairstylists spot any of these warning signs, the trainers urged them to be considerate listeners, avoid blaming the victim and then point the client in the direction of organisations that can provide support.

“It opens them up to give more opportunities to talk to you and you will be ready, prepared to help,” said Brown, 47.

Chicago Says No More, a domestic abuse and sexual assault outreach organisation, worked with lawmakers on crafting the legislation. The group’s founder, Kristie Paskvan, said around a dozen states were now considering similar measures.

“It’s a great start to raising the conversation,” Paskvan said. “A lot of times people are afraid to come forth because there is victim blaming. People don’t believe them.”

Illinois experienced a jump in the number of reported domestic violence crimes to around 103,500 in 2015 from less than 100,000 a year earlier, according to data from the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority.

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Though the number has fallen sharply in Illinois from the early to mid-2000s, legislators who backed the measure say stylists can play a role in further reducing the incidence of domestic violence and helping those who become victims.

Only about 55 percent of domestic violence incidents in the US are reported to the police, according to a 2014 report by the US Department of Justice. Current or former boyfriends or girlfriends commit most domestic violence, the report said.

During Sunday’s class, trainers spoke not just about physical and sexual abuse, but of emotional abuse as well.

One Chicago hairstylist, who asked not to be named to protect her client, said a long-time customer had spoken often about being verbally accosted by an ex-husband.

“I didn’t realise the emotional abuse was as punishable, I guess, as the physical or sexual,” the stylist said after the class, admitting she was sceptical about its value of such training beforehand.