Russell Fredrick of A-1 Kutz in Atlanta, Georgia is offering customers a special haircuts for their misbehaving kids. Fredrick gives bad kids “old man haircuts” if the parents ask for the “Benjamin Button” special. Apparently he does it for free!
From the Washington Post:
Three days a week, parents can take their misbehaving kids to A-1 Kutz and ask for the “Benjamin Button Special,” which Russell Fredrick and his team of barbers are offering — free of charge — to parents who want to try a novel form of discipline.
The cut involves shaving hair off the child’s crown until he begins to resemble a balding senior citizen, inviting that unique brand of adolescent humiliation that can only come from teasing classmates and unwanted attention.
Fredrick says that he’s gotten some negative attention from his campaign to help keep kids in line. But mostly the reception has been positive. “There are a few people that are saying it’s emotional abuse; but on average, everyone is applauding the mother that brought the child in — and applauding me as well.”
The crafty barber says that he does this because it’s getting harder to discipline kids these days. “Parents are at a loss,” Fredrick said to the Washington Post. “When you go to discipline kids these days, they can’t necessarily use physical punishment they way parents did in the past, but they have to do something. If you don’t, and your kid ends up doing something crazy, everyone is going to say the problems started at home.”
Fredrick also said that a lot of these boys only get good positive male role models when they come into the barbershop. “I hope that most people won’t have to do this unless it’s an extreme circumstances and nothing else is working,” he said. “First, you talk or implement your restrictions. But when the conventional ways don’t work these days, you have to get creative.”
What do you think about this as a form of punishment? Is it effective? Or cruel? Leave your thoughts below.
