The month of February is Black History Month, and it got us thinking, “How has the professional beauty industry changed over the past 60+ years for the advancement of black beauty professionals? What kind of evolution has occurred since the Civil Rights Movement, and since iconic individuals like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X had their voices heard? How has this movement and awareness paved the way for the African-American beauty professional?” And when we think about Black History Month and hear the name Martin Luther King Jr., Polly Sanders-Peterson, one of our 2018 Faces of Sola, immediately comes to mind. During the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, Polly opened up her salon and gave free haircuts to white women the day MLK spoke. Leading up to that pivotal point in her career wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. She faced countless obstacles of racism and segregation while trying to make a living standing behind the chair. Did this type of racism and segregation exist when Mahogany Plautz, another 2018 Faces of Sola stylist, started her journey into the beauty industry? Her parents married in 1975, not long after mixed-race marriage was legal, and growing up bi-racial and not having a lot of other kids like her around was difficult. “I had to learn some really tough lessons about what that meant to me and how I identified myself,” she shared with us during our interview for the 2018 Faces of Sola photo/video shoot. How did Mahogany’s professional journey compare to Polly’s? Where were there parallels and differences? In order to answer these questions and to have a better understanding of their individual journeys, journeys with a 30-year difference, we decided to get up-close-and-personal with them. We asked both of these women the same questions to see how their answers compare, considering their age difference and the number of years they have spent standing behind the chair. While both women’s journeys are uniquely theirs, there is one overarching similarity between the two: their message is one of empowerment, resilience, and strength. Let’s dive into their Q&A. Sola: How many years have you ladies been in the beauty industry? Polly: 53 years. Mahogany: I’ve been in the industry for 22 years and have been behind the chair for 17 years. Sola: In beauty school, were you presented with any challenges due to being a black woman? If so, how and when were you able to overcome them? Polly: Yes. I actually was the first African-American to attend and graduate from Hollywood Beauty College in Denver, Colorado back in 1963. Upon my arrival and introduction, Harry, the school manager, told everyone not to make any difference with me. So I had to learn white girl's hair, foundation, make-up, etc. Also, a customer of the college said to my face that she didn't want a colored woman to do her hair. Harry intervened and said, “You don't want her, well then you can't have no one else do your hair here!" He taught me not to let this determine my worth! This paved the way for all the rejections to come in the all white salons that I was to work in! Mahogany: For me, there were more opportunities than challenges. I had little experience with kinky curly hair that wasn’t my own when I started school. However, myself and the other black students were given mostly, if not only, black guests. There was little to no time spent learning the care and styling techniques needed to understand the needs of our black guests. That’s where the other black students stepped in. I learned so much from my classmates! I will be forever grateful to them. Sola: After graduating cosmetology school, did you face any career obstacles, job placement, and/or career opportunities or advancement due to being a black woman? Polly: I had a hard time getting hired as a hairdresser in salons, but one day, a lady named Minnie hired me. But soon after that, I had to find a new salon because Minnie’s was too far from my home, and I had no car. The second salon I worked at was closer to my home. When I went into the salon, the owner looked at me and said she didn't need help, even though there was a Help Wanted ad in the paper. There was a girl who worked there who said to the owner, “Remember, I’m going down to part-time and you will need someone.” I was like, “Wow! This just got me in the door!” After the girl said that, she asked me if I could do white hair? I said, “Yes! I went to an all white beauty college!" I flourished there and decided to move to a bigger salon that I had seen along the way home when I rode on the bus. I stopped by and met the owner who instantly loved me and hired me. He trained me and instilled in me the best customer service, and even opened the doors for my leadership in the industry. His name was Earl, whom I loved and learned so much from. But in my heart, I was trying