Scammers are targeting clients looking to get their hair braided by using real stylists’ work and creating fake social media pages.
Reports of Scams
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is receiving reports of scams targeting individuals wanting braids. Scammers take pictures from legitimate stylists and post them on fake social media pages.
Modus Operandi
Potential clients find the fake pages and book appointments, often making small deposits. Clients realize they have been scammed when they do not hear back from the supposed stylist on the appointment day.
Impact on Legitimate Businesses
Real stylists like Porsche Hensley, who has been braiding hair for over 10 years and owns Divine Innovation 615 in Nashville, are affected. Hensley reported instances where clients arrived for appointments, only to find out they were scammed.
Precautions to Avoid Scams
BBB advises not to pay for the service in full before the appointment. Visit the stylist’s location before booking. Verify the stylist’s work by searching for them online and including the word “scam” after their name. Ask for the stylist’s license number and verify it.
Continuing the Business
Despite the scams, stylists like Porsche Hensley remain undeterred and continue their work.
Conclusion
Scammers exploiting the popularity of hair braiding are causing issues for both clients and legitimate stylists. Clients are advised to take precautions to ensure they are booking authentic services.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — Pictured: Saer Zamata — (Photo by: Mary Ellen Matthews/NBC)Actress and comedian Saer Zamata, known for her breakout role on the cast of Saturday Night Live, will partner with the American Civil Liberties Union to support women’s rights. She joins the ACLU as a celebrityambassador on the heels of her recent promotion to repertory player for SNL’s 41st season, her third season with the show.In her role as an ambassador, Zamata will elevate the ACLU’s work to fight gender inequality and structural discrimination against women in employment, education, healthcare, housing, and criminal justice through advocacy and public education. The ACLU Women’s Rights Project was co-founded in 1972 by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who called women’s rights “an essential part of the overall human rights agenda.”Zamata is featured in Saer Zamata Says Women’s Rights “Still a BFD!” a new ACLU video that puts the spotlight on gender inequality and privilege.”It’s so wonderful that women continue to break down barriers and change societal expectations, but women still suffer discrimination for their gender, class and race,” says Zamata. “I am honored to continue the fight for equal economic opportunities, the right to choose, and an end to gender-based violence by serving as an ACLU Celebrity Ambassador.”Though strides have been made in the past several decades to advance and protect the rights of women and girls, there’s a lot left to do. In the U.S. today:Women make only 78 cents for every dollar earned by a man; African-American women only earn 64 cents; and Latinas, only 55 cents for each dollar earned by a white man;A woman’s right to choose is threatened by extreme lawmakers who have introduced more than 100 abortion restrictions in 2015 alone;Few legal protections exist for pregnant workers and new mothers, putting families in danger of economic instability, though women are the primary breadwinners in 4 out of 10 families with children.”We are thrilled to name Saer Zamata as our newest celebrity ambassador,” says Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. “She is the perfect voice for the next generation, and especially for those looking to effect real and lasting change on women’s rights issues.”Zamata—who was named one of Cosmopolitan’s “13 Funny Women to Watch in 2014,”—joins Harry Belafonte, Michael K. Williams, Lewis Black, Marlee Matlin, and others, to amplify the ACLU’s work on priority civil liberties issues, including mass incarceration, voting rights, disability rights, and LGBT equality.
