New Book Series on Route 1 Black-Owned Barbershops Highlights Public Health Efforts

An internationally recognized effort on the Route 1 corridor to promote the coronavirus vaccine and other public health measures through black-owned and operated barbershops is getting more attention through a new comic book series as part of the Barbershop Storybook Project.

During the pandemic, The Shop Spa at 5916 Riggs Rd. was recognized for its work with the University of Maryland Center for Health Equity to promote the vaccination and help dispel misinformation, especially among the Black community.

Now two local artists have taken the same research and their own interviews to tell stories through a new book series they hope will improve public health.

In the Barbershop Storybook Project Jasmine Mitchell, a multi-disciplinary artist and Marcus Ford, a poet, filmmaker and designer, created a series of comic books with local settings that interweave key health facts within the narrative. Both Mitchell and Ford are Prince George’s County natives and graduates of the University of Maryland at College Park.

The first book is set in Brentwood, and the second takes place entirely at Thomas S. Stone Elementary School in Mount Rainier.

When the series is complete, the books will be placed in Black-owned barbershops and salons participating in the Health Advocates In-Reach and Research (HAIR) and Wellness Warriors programs developed at the Center for Health Equity with support from the Cigna insurance company.

“The coolest part about the project is that all these stories and plot lines are based on real data collected by the team at the University of Maryland as well as conversations we’ve had with people throughout this project,” Ford said. “We’ve talked with barbers, scientists and crossing guards and all of those conversations made their way into the books.”

The Center for Health Equity is holding a staged reading of the first two books at 7 p.m. Monday, September 12, in the Rehearsal Hall at 641 D St. NW in Washington, D.C.

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