• Celebrity
    • OTE – Screen Kings
    • Daniel Kaluuya Digital Cover
    • Digital Cover Method Man
    • Digital Cover Zazie
    • Celebrity News
    • ‘Yes, Girl!’ Podcast
    • Entertainment
    • Black Celeb Couples
    • Celebrity Moms
    • Red Carpet
    • If Not For My Girls
  • Fashion
    • ESSENCE Fashion House 2022
    • Fashion News
    • Street Style
    • Accessories
    • Fashion Week
  • Beauty
    • Best In Black Beauty 2023
    • ESSENCE Hair Awards 2022
    • AVEENO Skin Health Startup Accelerator
    • Beauty News
    • Skin
    • Makeup
    • Nails
    • Girls United: Beautiful Possibilities
  • Hair
    • Hair News
    • Natural
    • Relaxed
    • Transitioning
    • Weave
    • 4C
  • Love
    • Love & Sex News
    • The Solve Podcast
    • Weddings
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
  • Lifestyle
    • Black History Month
    • ESSENCE Gift Guide 2022
    • ESSENCE + smartwater Live Well Challenge
    • Build Your Legacy 2022
    • Dream & Plan with Confidence Prudential
    • AMEX Platinum Travel
    • Homecoming Season 2022
    • Lifestyle News
    • Health & Wellness
    • ESSENCE Eats
    • Money & Career
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Travel
    • Food & Drink
    • Black Travel Guide
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Paint The Polls Black
    • Raise Your Voice
    • Culture
    • Politics
  • Video
  • Festival
    • 2023 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
    • 2022 Fest Videos
  • Events
    • 2023 Wellness House
    • 2023 Black Women In Hollywood
    • 2023 HOLLYWOOD HOUSE
    • 2023 ESSENCE Film Festival
    • 2022 Girls United Summit
    • 2022 ESSENCE Fashion House
    • 2022 Homecoming Season
    • She Got Now
    • Dear Black Men
    • I Am Speaking
    • Power Tools
  • Studios
  • Girls United

WHERE BLACK CULTURE, COMMUNITY AND CONSCIOUSNESS MEET

Sign up for ESSENCE Newsletters the keep the Black women at the forefront of conversation.

Your email is required.
Your email is in invalid format.
Confirm email is required.
Email did not match.
Select the newsletters you'd like to receive:
Please select at least one option.
By clicking Subscribe Now, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Skip to content
SUBSCRIBE
  • MAGAZINE
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Celebrity
    • OTE – Screen Kings
    • Daniel Kaluuya Digital Cover
    • Digital Cover Method Man
    • Digital Cover Zazie
    • Celebrity News
    • ‘Yes, Girl!’ Podcast
    • Entertainment
      • The State Of R&B
    • Black Celeb Couples
    • Celebrity Moms
    • Red Carpet
    • If Not For My Girls
  • Fashion
    • ESSENCE Fashion House 2022
    • Fashion News
    • Street Style
    • Accessories
    • Fashion Week
  • Beauty
    • Best In Black Beauty 2023
    • ESSENCE Hair Awards 2022
    • AVEENO Skin Health Startup Accelerator
    • Beauty News
    • Skin
    • Makeup
    • Nails
    • Girls United: Beautiful Possibilities
  • Hair
    • Hair News
    • Natural
    • Relaxed
    • Transitioning
    • Weave
    • 4C
  • Love
    • Love & Sex News
    • The Solve Podcast
    • Weddings
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
  • Lifestyle
    • Black History Month
    • ESSENCE Gift Guide 2022
    • ESSENCE + smartwater Live Well Challenge
    • Build Your Legacy 2022
    • Dream & Plan with Confidence Prudential
    • AMEX Platinum Travel
    • Homecoming Season 2022
    • Lifestyle News
    • Health & Wellness
    • ESSENCE Eats
    • Money & Career
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Travel
    • Food & Drink
    • Black Travel Guide
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Paint The Polls Black
    • Raise Your Voice
    • Culture
    • Politics
  • Video
  • Festival
    • 2023 ESSENCE Festival Of Culture
    • 2022 Fest Videos
  • Events
    • 2023 Wellness House
    • 2023 Black Women In Hollywood
    • 2023 HOLLYWOOD HOUSE
    • 2023 ESSENCE Film Festival
    • 2022 Girls United Summit
    • 2022 ESSENCE Fashion House
    • 2022 Homecoming Season
    • She Got Now
    • Dear Black Men
    • I Am Speaking
    • Power Tools
  • Studios
  • Girls United
Home · Hair

Editorial Hairstylist Naeemah LaFond Gives Brands Guide For Hiring Equality

The amika Global Artistic Director and highly sought after stylist created an easy to use rubric to support Black creatives.
Naeemah LaFond Offers Beauty Brands Guide To Support Black Creatives
@belowtheborough
By Shalwah Evans · Updated December 6, 2020

Naeemah LaFond joined the countless Black creatives calling for tangible and measurable change from beauty brands and industry decision makers this week. The highly sought after editorial hairstylist and Global Artistic Director for amika penned a guide book that lays out direct actions that those decision makers can take to support Black hairstylists, including advice about hiring practices, normalizing Black beauty, and education about Black hair.

It comes on the heels of beauty brands making monetary donations to organizations such as Black Lives Matter, the NAACP, Color Of Change and more. Black creatives and Black brand owners are demanding longterm commitments to upending the current system that blocks opportunities for Black talent and essentially ignores the needs of Black consumers.

“There’s a global conversation about racism and inequality that is taking place and I’m cautiously optimistic to see that my colleagues in the hair care industry have an open ear and are ready to join in on the conversation,” LaFond said. “I think that outside of what is being done in your personal lives to advocate for change and injustice towards black people, that there also needs to be an internal look at your professional spaces and the changes that need to be made there.”

View this post on Instagram

What I’m about to say here is long overdue. There’s a global conversation about racism and inequality that is taking place. I’m optimistic in knowing that my colleagues in the hair care industry and other industries that we contribute our work to have an open ear and are reaching out to me to find out how they can do better. I think that outside of what is being done in your personal lives to advocate for change and injustice towards black people, that there also needs to be an internal look at your professional spaces and the changes that need to be made there. I believe that the first step lies in recognizing the disproportionate lack of access that black people have to opportunities in this industry which lead to systemic and economic inequalities. I want to be proactive, so I’ve made a list of action steps that decision makers and leaders can follow in making a real change in our industry that goes beyond a social media post. We are at a historical moment and I along with many of my peers are open to having this conversation with you (as awkward as it may get) so that we can advance as an industry in a way that is in true representation of all of its artists. Our Industry as a collective needs to do better. Our craft is owed that. Let’s do the work. (Tag anyone you feel needs to see this/ fwd the information- repost it. All hands on deck.)

A post shared by NAEEMAH LAFOND -HAIRSTYLIST (@naeemahlafond) on Jun 2, 2020 at 2:03pm PDT

“I believe that the first step lies in recognizing the disproportionate lack of access that black people have to opportunities in this industry which lead to systematic and economic inequalities,” LaFond continued. “I want to be proactive, so I’ve made a list of ways that decision makers and leaders can help in making a real change in our industry that goes beyond a social media post. We are at a historical moment and I along with many of my peers are open to having this conversation with you (as awkward as it may get) so that we can advance as an industry in a way that is in true representation of all of its artists.”

Many Black leaders in the beauty industry are pushing for their non-Black colleagues to go further than statements in support of Black Lives Matter on their social media. UOMA Beauty Founder and CEO Sharon Chuter launched the #PutUpOrShutUp campaign calling for beauty brands to disclose to the public the number of Black people they have working in corporate and leadership roles at their companies.

View this post on Instagram

#pulluporshutup 🎤 @heysharonc

A post shared by PULL UP OR SHUT UP! (@pullupforchange) on Jun 3, 2020 at 9:13am PDT

Camara AUnique, celebrity makeup artist and owner of Camara AUnique Beauty, is adding her voice to the conversation by compiling a directory of more than 100 Black makeup artists and beauty influencers. Creatives can actually add themselves to the list to keep it up to date. In conjunction with LaFond’s guide book, it creates an environment where brands have no excuse to overlook Black creative talent.

“For years Black Artists are not treated fairly and it’s time to bring change in the beauty community,” AUnique said “My heart has always been for people.”

So brand leaders not only have a way to understand how they can do better and act on their vows to support the Black community, they have resource that they can reference to find artists that they might not have been acquainted with otherwise.

TOPICS:  amika Black Lives Matter camara aunique Camara AUnique Beauty Entertainment kendrick Naeemah Lafond News oppression sampson Sharon Chuter support Black creatives support Black hairstylists UOMA Beauty yes girl
COMPANY INFORMATION
  • Our Company
  • Customer Service
  • Essence Ventures
  • Change Your Address
  • Contact Us
  • Job Opportunities
  • Internships
  • Media Kit
  • tag
SUBSCRIBE
  • Newsletters
  • Give a Gift of ESSENCE
  • Magazine Tablet Edition
FOLLOW US
MORE ON ESSENCE
  • Home
  • Love
  • Celebrity
  • Beauty
  • Hair
  • Fashion
  • ESSENCE festival

ESSENCE.com is part of ESSENCE Communications, Inc.

Essence may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.

©2023 ESSENCE Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Essence.com Advertising Terms

Get The ESSENCE Newsletter and
Special Offers delivered to your inbox

By clicking Sign Up, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Get The ESSENCE Magazine
by subscribing below
subscribe now