cleancutcleanstart

位於墨爾本的髮型師 Nasir Sobhani 本來是個吸毒者，當他成功戒毒後，就開始免費幫路上的無家者理髮，並和他們深入聊天，在網上分享他們的故事。計劃名為「Clean Cut, Clean Start」

有天髮型屋休息，他突然踩著滑板到街上尋找無家者，詢問他們可否讓他幫忙理髮，結果計劃就這樣開始了。他認為即使是無家者，也應該有乾淨的頭髮和外表，在理髮過程中，Nasir Sobhani 會跟他們聊天，聽這些無家者的故事：

只有 23 歲的 Thomas 希望成為一個青年導師，因為他曾海洛英上癮、14 歲就被判監 6 年，現在於紐約的街上努力生存，而且由於有一個女兒，他希望幫助不同的孩子，不會走上他一樣的路。

Duat，34 歲，母親是南非人而父親是蘇丹人，他因為幫助被虐待的姐姐而被幾個男人毆打，躺了近一個星期醫院，剛剛才出院；之前因為被朋友欺騙，吸了偽裝的普通香煙，而染上了毒癮。

這位先生 71 歲，成為無家者 4 年，他以前是一家大公司的負責人，但卻因為法律問題失去了房子、妻子去世，現在一無所有。不過其實他有一個兒子，住在另一個城市，卻因為不想兒子和孫子擔心，所以沒有告之。

以下還有其他無家者的個案，可看照片詳細描述： 

This gentleman has been homeless for many years. I am unsure of his name or age, and the whole time we only communicated through a translator. His story was very sad. He was an orphan and raised in an orphanage until he was old enough to leave – he never got adopted. He joined the army once he left the orphanage and after completing several years of duty, he was sent to jail for a crime he committed after a fight with another man. After spending most of his 20’s in prison he was released with a criminal record and no formal education. Also, in Russia you need to apply for government subsidized housing by the time you’re 25 to ensure you get support with accommodation – as a result of this, he was now homeless and was staying at a shelter. During this time he met a woman whom he fell in love with, and they decided to live together. He got to move into her home and it looked like he finally got a break in life and someone he could call “family”. However this ended when they separated – leaving him to live on the streets once again. The shelter he was at now is also going to kick him out due to the fact that he is not a native of St Petersburg and that was a requirement for him to stay. You could tell he was really down on his luck and even though he didn’t say much or show any happiness – when he saw his photo after the haircut he smiled from ear to ear. #thestreetsbarber #cleancutcleanstart #russia A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

This is Craig. He’s 28 years old and a native of Boston. He has two daughters from two different women – who he says are both great mothers to his kids, adding that he unfortunately isn’t in the right state to be a good father to them at present. He had arrived to NYC recently from his nomadic travels – from Boston to Atlanta and now the Big Apple. He told me that for the past ten years he has been in and out of the streets and jail – spending two long-term sentences totalling about five years, and a few short-term ones. Most of his time in prison was due to possession charges which included opiates (OxyContin) and crack cocaine. Addicted to crack cocaine, Craig would sell OxyContin as a way of supporting his crack addiction. It was easy money as the OxyContin epidemic was quite severe in the past decade and many people became slaves to the drug. Since his recent jail term, Craig is trying to better himself and has no outstanding warrants. He is a free man now and trying to find refuge so he can eventually become a better father to his kids. He wants the experiences in his life to be a learning lesson for his children; to be someone they can confide in. When I saw Craig, his head was tucked away in his arms with a hat and hoodie on. Though confused at first when I approached him, after I explained to him what I do, his face went from being unsure and worried to joyous and enthusiastic. He’s like “I needed this haircut! Why you think I’m wearing this hat!?” After the cut we gave him a streets barber grooming bag with an organic deodorant spray and a tub of dry shampoo. I thanked him for doing me a favour and he said “what do you mean, how so?” I replied “you gave me the opportunity to do what I love doing, and I got to have a real nice conversation with you – to me, that means the world.” His smile was priceless… #thestreetsbarber #cleancutcleanstart

A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

This is Autiek, aka K-Tone. He is one of the few South Sudanese refugee boys I got to spend the day with recently. K-Tone was forced to leave South Sudan at the age of 11 with his family. He told me that back in South Sudan they didn’t know where their next meal would come from, fearful of being dragged into the violence at any moment. Basically, he was living day-to-day hoping for the best. After living in Melbourne for a few years – getting comfortable living in a western country, he started getting involved with a group of kids who would spend most of their days drinking alcohol. He told me that he would often drink until he “felt numb.” I wondered why he needed to feel numb at such a young age – but it made sense knowing he grew up in a war-torn country, ridden with violence and hardship. He admitted that he had a problem with anger growing up and resorted to violence to solve his frustrations. During this phase of his life, he was constantly getting into fights and had many brushes with the law – which eventually put him into a juvenile detention center for his various offenses. When I asked him how that was, he told me “I hated it – but I learnt so much from it all.” When he said that, it really resonated with me because it reminded me so much of my time in rehab. I hated it but in turn it was the best thing I have done in my life. K-Tone continued saying “before going to juvie I hated authority and the police, so I decided to study politics, and learn more about leaders like Martin Luther King. I also studied literacy because I realized I love to write.” He found an outlet for his anger through writing – whenever he felt angry he would write down his emotions as song lyrics. Hip hop became his release. Since leaving juvie he has joined the hip hop collective called the “Bench Mark Crew”, a crew made up of other refugees who use their lyrics to help make an impact on the community and try to inspire youth to use their talents for good. After shaping up his afro and giving him a line-up, him and his crew spit a few bars for me and we just vibed as the sun set by the river in Footscray. What a day it was indeed. #thestreetsbarber #cleancutcleanstart A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

This man is in his 40s and has one child with his ex wife. He was born fully blind in both eyes and his story is absolutely tragic. He was able to meet a woman and marry her in his youth and the two of them had a child. They lived in his apartment and when the child grew up things went very wrong for him. He said that his wife and son kicked him out of his home, and took everything away from him. He told me they did it illegally and deceitfully, and that he is now in the midst of battling things out in court to get his life back! However while the legal issues were being processed, he is forced to stay in the homeless shelter. It’s been 2 years… Please do me a favor and think twice before assuming homeless people are lazy or drug addicts. #thestreetsbarber #cleancutcleanstart #russia

A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

This is Carlos. A 43 year old man who has been in and out of jail for the last 20 years. He just got out two months ago and is determined to become a better father to his two children (aged 16 and 17) who he hasn’t been able to spend much time with. He developed a serious heroin habit in jail and calls the streets “home”. Carlos told me he has tried quitting “hammer” but can’t shake the habit no matter how hard he tries. What really shook me was when he told me that the last time he cried was when he got out of jail and spent time his 17 year old son. He was talking with his son about his life and his son told him “you know dad, you were only ever around for three of my birthdays” – which made Carlos break down and cry. The son held Carlos as he wept and said “it’s ok dad, we all make mistakes”. His son inspired me to be more empathetic and forgiving to those around me, and I hope he does the same for you. #cleancutcleanstart #juniorlion A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

This is Mark. He’s 28 years old. He hasn’t had contact with his family for nearly a decade. I’ve known of Mark for a while now and would show him love everytime I bumped into him, and he would reciprocate with so much joy. You could tell he just wanted someone to talk to. Today when I saw him on the street, I asked if he’d be interested in a cut. His eyes lit up as he said “Ya man, I haven’t had a chance to get groomed in 8 or 9 months.” He told me he’d been homeless for 3 years. He said it wasn’t drugs which led him to the streets – that although he uses both heroin and meth occasionally, he does so more for social reasons, so he can ‘fit in’ and feel like he has friends. He got kicked out of his accommodation 3 years ago and hasn’t been able to land a proper job or home since. He suffers from mental illness too – “I’m really depressed and hear voices in my head, Nas” – he told me, and that’s another reason why he’s on the streets. He has no support system and doesn’t really have friends. He is lonely and just wants people to show him love and accept him. He said he often thinks about reconnecting with his family, especially during Christmas and New Years when he’s alone. Listening to his story I just felt sick to my stomach at how neglected he felt. He has no support system, no friends and no family to support him. He actually didn’t even have proper clothes on! His jeans were ripped and falling off his waist. He had no underwear on, and his shirt was also ripped and dirty. I had to go the full 9 yards on the brother! I went and bought him a new outfit and really took my time grooming him – with a cut, beard trim, dry shampoo, aftershave, and style. Looking at him afterwards I was quite taken aback myself and told him “Mark, you look so good bro” and he responded with “I know, and I feel GREAT!”. That response made me so happy and I just took his hand and said “I hope you realize you’ve made a friend for life now.. see you around soon.” I love this guy – his sincerity and open heart. Thanks for opening my eyes, Mark. Bless. #cleancutcleanstart #thestreetsbarber #thestreetsbarberproject

A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

  This is Simon. 46 years old. Simon has no wife nor kids. He used morphine for the majority of his life and as of a few years ago he took his drug use to another level – began using heroin. This changed his whole life around and said he has “nothing as a result”. When I asked him what he wanted me to do with his hair he said he didn’t care and that he wasn’t growing his hair long on purpose but it was due to the fact that he had no money for a cut. He also told me that he was going to detox/rehab tomorrow to help kick his heroin addiction. When he told me this I told him we need to make him look fresh for this new beginning! After the cut and dry shampoo treatment he felt like a new man and said “maybe I’ll finally get a lady!”. I hope rehab is a success Simon. Bless #cleancutcleanstart #thestreetsbarber   A photo posted by Nasir Sobhani (@thestreetsbarber) on

幫人理髮時的情況：

Nasir Sobhani 說，無家者常被社會的人們忽略、歧視，在這樣一個殘酷的世界，他希望能做點什麼去改變，哪怕只是一點點、一個笑容也好：「我曾經是一個吸毒者，完全不關心別人。現在我醒過來了，服務他人是我人生中體會過最好的事。」

取悅他人，自己也會充滿喜悅——《曙光》尼采。

Instagram : Nasir Sobhani