The barber shop has always been the safe space for men to open up on any given issue laid on the floor, from politics, to family life, culture issues and even health. Most times the narrative is Black men don’t publicly talk about a lot of things that concern them or their health. So, where and when men become more open and transparent to the idea of going to see a doctor or talking to someone about what they’re dealing with mentally?
June is Men’s Health Month and Wayne County thought it would be fitting to help bring awareness and be a part of the conversation. The national namesake of the month is to encourage men to take charge of their health by implementing healthy living decisions.
By using a local barbershop as the backdrop, Wayne County Executive Warren Evans held a candid community conversation with the goal of bringing local leaders together on the discussion of eating healthy, moving physically, being okay to ask for help, setting an example and helping spread the word.
“Promoting awareness and education about men’s health is crucial,” said Evans. “We must emphasize that taking care of oneself is not a sign of weakness but rather a strength that enables individuals to lead fulfilling lives and be there for their loved ones. Barbershop Talk is intended to foster open conversations, provide resources and encourage self-care practices; together, we can support men in maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle.”
The discussion was held at Executive Cuts & More on Jos Campau in Detroit. The conversation was held with community and government officials including Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, HHVS director, Dr. William Sharpe (Evans’ Physician), Bishop Ethan Sheard, Javion Johnson, Millennial Advisory Council executive director, and Moderator Daniel Baxter.
“You have institutions right here in town that will not run a PSA test,” said Sharpe. “They won’t run it on anybody, let alone African Americans and this is giant disparity in health care. The outcomes are terrible if you don’t get checked out.”
Listening intensely as they sat in their barber chairs as Sharpe spoke on the issue of prostate cancer for Black men and the number of studies surrounding it. He called it out as one of the aggressive form of diseases inherited within the Black community.
The topics were real and presented as authentic expressions of perspective from everyone in the room.
“Sometimes we keep doing the things we do, without thinking about what the long-term ramifications are and if a disease happens , we’re like ‘well you know what, it happened and I really can’t do anything about it,’” said El-Sayed.
“As a person of faith, there’s a way faith sometimes gets used against doing the things we need to do to take care of ourselves.”
El-Sayed also said that as a community it’ll be important to ask questions on how to approach taking steps with young men to develop a set of changed behaviors. He said we need to be saying to them “someday if they’re lucky, they get to grow old and that they get to do some things today about addressing that.”
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