BRATTLEBORO-The Root Social Justice Center’s annual Back-to-School BIPOC Hair Clinic returns Saturday, Aug. 22, at The Root’s community space at 28 Williams St., offering free professional hair care to Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community members across southern Vermont with textured hair.
The annual clinic centers young people as they get ready for the start of the school year, but appointments are open to BIPOC community members of all ages with textured hair.
In Vermont, accessing stylists with experience caring for textured hair can be difficult, particularly outside of larger population centers. The Root’s BIPOC Hair Clinics help close that gap by connecting community members with skilled stylists and by offering professional hair care completely free of charge.
“Our hair deserves care from people who understand our needs, and we deserve access to skilled hair care that celebrates and supports who we are,” Derrick Miller-Handley, communications director at The Root, said in a news release. “That’s really at the heart of the Hair Clinic.”
For BIPOC Hair Clinic Coordinator Gloria Cruzado, the impact goes well beyond an appointment.
“I’ve experienced the transformative power of cultural inclusivity,” Cruzado said. “I’ve witnessed this event uplift the local BIPOC community by providing this essential service to those who may otherwise lack access.”
By bringing skilled stylists together in Brattleboro and offering their services for free, organizers say the Hair Clinic makes that care more accessible close to home.
“The Hair Clinic is about more than access to a service,” said Adriana Negrón, BIPOC Thriving Network (BTN) programs director at The Root. “It’s about creating a joyful, BIPOC-centering space where hair care can also be about community and connection, and where people can feel seen, cared for, and celebrated for who they are.”
Stylists and participants alike have described the experience of coming together around BIPOC hair and care as something special—and something they rarely encounter in this part of New England. Participants have spoken about the confidence, relief, and joy that can come from sitting in the chair of someone who understands their hair and being able to leave feeling cared for and more like themselves.
Free appointments are open to BIPOC community members with textured hair of all ages and can be booked at tinyurl.com/HairClinic26. The clinic is offered completely free to participants, with donations helping The Root support stylists, supplies, and other costs that make the event possible. Community members can help sustain the clinic by donating at therootsjc.org/donate or in person at the event.
This Town and Village item was submitted to The Commons.