Fashioning the Body: Versions of the Citizen, the Self, and the Subject

            When I think of a beauty parlor, there are a few images that come to mind. I think of the Supercuts, the Hairmasters and the other chain stores that focus on selling bodies services to make their hair look more attractive. However, those images don’t really capture the essence of what a beauty parlor is, in my humble opinion.  These are not places where communities can come together and share information. There is no rich history behind these shiny superficial bastions of consumer culture. When I think of a beauty parlor, I think of Los Angeles County Jail.

            When I was eighteen, I was arrested in Los Angeles County for a warrant from Thurston County and was a guest of that county for about three months. During those months, I experienced and saw some of the cruelest and kindest human behavior that I have ever seen in my life. For most of my stay there, I was locked in a dormitory with about one hundred and eighty other women. I would say that out of that number between one hundred and forty and one hundred and fifty were Black or African-American, between twenty and thirty were Latina or Hispanic and then there were about ten White women. After a short time in jail, I caught the attention of a Black woman who really liked me for some reason. I feel the need to mention that the only reason I knew she was a woman was we were in an all female facility. If I would have seen her on the street; I would have assumed she was a male bodybuilder. She would walk around it front of me, point to me and say, “You fuck with the White girl and I’ll kill you”. Later I found out that this was no idle threat as she was in jail for manslaughter and attempted manslaughter. On the other hand, this gave me some freedom to walk around and interact with the other people that were locked up with me. I quickly found out that this was a dorm that was meant for women who were either expected to be going to prison or were expected to be some kind of security risk. I was considered to be some kind of security risk because of my then husband’s arrest record. The other women that were locked up in there were there for one of a few reasons. Drugs were the most common charge. One reason was violence that might or might not have been gang related. Another reason was prostitution. There were also a few women in there for probation violations. While I was there, an English woman passed through. She had been arrested for drugs and was hoping to get deported because she couldn’t afford to pay for her own way home. Then they were the women that would sit and do each others hair. At first I couldn’t understand why they were spending so much time (I’m estimating at least eight hours per hairstyle) doing hair when it was obvious that they weren’t going anywhere. I sat with them a few times and eventually worked up the nerve to ask them why they spent so much time doing their hair. One of the first answers was obvious and I feel a little foolish for not recognizing it myself. When you’re in jail, you’re issued a uniform. The only outlet that you have to express your individuality is your hair and makeup. They also told me that sometimes it was just good to sit and talk. I also picked up on the fact that there was physical contact with the other people that wouldn’t be considered an infraction of the rules. In fact, touching was against the rules. But most guards didn’t feel like filling out paperwork over a hair do. Over time, I found out that if I didn’t talk, I could sit there long enough that they would start talking to each other as if I wasn’t there. They talked about their families, their men and their children. They talked about drugs and how hard it was to stay clean. They talked about the gangs that they were in. While I was sitting and listening to them talk, I was able to learn about their issues in a way that wouldn’t have been available to me in the normal routine of my day to day life. I also got to watch the interactions that happen when people don’t have any space between them.

As we wondered through what appeared to be an oddly shaped community of triple sectioned blue buildings among precisely placed ornaments of bushy, some stout, others where giant green sticks.  The paths were twisty, each curving to a unique destination creating an idea of artistic placement as some were very hard to walk on, and others were soft, consisting of loosely placed tiny pebbles.  Each building seemed to be dressed in a different theme, pieces of paper (multi-colored) attached as if to promote some sort of statement or gathering for perhaps those who occupy this space.  We did come across some bodies coincidently entering these facilities, very secluded and quiet, as if to be on a secret mission, not to glance away from their destination or make any sort of contact with those around them.  The buildings themselves seemed to be aligned in a circular fashion with two sets of these green, yellow and blue boxes, each having their own distinct aroma but its sour stench kept us from peeking inside in spite of the writing above these containers mentioning “Garbage” or “Recycle” and “Mixed Waste.”  Another observation we found were that in the entrances of these buildings, on the one side there was a long piece of wood stretched out on top of a few posts, mostly likely used for sitting, standing, perhaps even dancing, but opposite this structure were metal pipes shaped in a fashion to secure oddly shaped units which we can only assume are used for transportation.  In one instance, we discovered that in one building, occupying the right side seemed to be a group more detail oriented then those on the left, only by which the signs on the door seemed to prove, most likely stating each sex separated by a wall which also seemed to be associated with how these beings walk amongst each other as well.  One on the right and another on the left, this type of technique seemed to be established as common rule without question.

there were way too many people observing registration (our original assignment) so we voyaged to the basement of the CAB to watch somebody sort the garbage.

A vast cement room with tall, yellow and green bins with very small wheels lining 1 1/2 sides along a concrete shelf. Several metal vehicles with much larger wheels and windows are parked across the room in spaces marked out by yellow stripes. Diagonal yellow stripes may indicate a "no parking" area as there are no metal vehicles in this space. The bins are about 5 feet deep and there is a man walking back and forth between them throwing in medium sized pieces of cardboard in one and paper in another. He is now rolling a gray cylindrical container across the top of the concrete shelf over to the corner of the room. It is filled to the brim with old food. Chicken scraps, noodles, orange peels, etc. There are many of these food containers sitting in the same corner. It is labeled, "compost". The man is looking at us as if we don't belong or serve a utilitarian purpose. There is a presence of anti-capitalist/authoritarian graffiti on the walls and on the yellow bins. "Recycle the Rich" "This is not yours" and the letter "E" with a circle around it next to the word "Equality" are a few examples. The entire room seems to have a precise purpose and routine. It is very cold and full of drafts and it is hard to hear yourself talk over the noise of fans and humming machinery.

Introductory Field Work: Bathrooms

Women’s Bathroom:

Metal squares and handle on door, as well as the height of the door itself, suggest that this room is intended for people of a specific height, probably 4 to 6.5 feet. People who do not fall into this range may require assistance entering this room.

Judging from the activity in this room, this is a place for conversation and small talk, as well as a place for privacy. Once you go behind the rectangular boards where a bowl-like structure sits, only your feet are visible from the other side. This way, you can get a sense of anonymity and privacy.

The sounds that can be heard from nearby the enclosed board areas are odd; you can hear the shuffling of clothes and the pouring of liquid followed by a whirring noise.

The room as a whole seems cluttered with objects. There are metal boxes in the boarded areas, rolls of white squares of different sizes, white pedestals that spit out clear liquid, and accessible boxes of some gel-like substance that foams when applied to the hands.

A large rectangle posted by the entrance demands the attention of the people that filter through this room. The people look to this rectangle and inspect themselves upon entering and before exiting.

The sign on the door says “Women’s Locker Room.” Behind the doors is a large space that is well-lit but not bright. The floor is covered by a thin green carpet; the walls are painted an off-white color. The room is undecorated. The temperature is lukewarm and there is a faint smell of chlorine. On each side of the room are several rows of green metal compartments in front of which people remove clothing and then put on other clothing. The person selects a compartment and puts their clothing and other personal items into it or takes items from it. On the right, there are two stalls with benches and doors behind which a person can dress and undress without exposing their body to others in the vicinity, but the number of these stalls is very low in proportion to the number of metal compartments. On the back wall there is a large mirror with no surrounding furniture, in front of which a person can stand and view the reflection of their own body.

This space connects to another room with tiled floors. A sign on the wall says “Please Shower Before Swimming.” Along the left wall are metal poles that release a stream of water under which a person can stand and remove filth from their body. Two of the poles have metal walls behind which a person can stand while they are washing, the other two do not.

An odd space that had various racks, shelves and tables that held several kinds of items. However, most of these items could be construed as written material for reading. These written materials seemed to be sorted into categories of some random sort. There were other items that I can only assume were for use with the printed material.There were yet more items that I'm assuming were for the daily care of the bodies that came into this space. The bodies that came into this space would walk around until they stopped and picked something up. They would then carry it up to the front of the space where they would hand it to another body and give them pieces of paper or a piece of plastic. This body would either give them more pieces of paper and/or pieces of metal back. If they had given that body a piece of plastic; they would get the piece of plastic back and a piece of paper to write something on. However, all of them got a white piece of paper. At that point, they would leave with their item.