A Barber shop debate in Atlantic City

by: Jason Springer

Sat May 02, 2009 at 01:49:17 PM EDT

The smell of oil sheen hair spray and the hum of electric razors set the scene for a debate Saturday at Omar and Abdullah's Hair Bazaar between mayoral candidates Mayor Lorenzo Langford and 2nd Ward Councilman Marty Small.

Tufts of black hair speckled the floor, and diesel fumes from buses that passed by on Atlantic Avenue wafted through the door. Posters of President Barack Obama, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X hung on the walls of the shop.

There was no podium, no microphones and no television cameras. But there was a moderator - barbershop co-owner Omar Anderson.

"You're a sellout! You're a snitch to the FBI!- someone in the crowd near the front door yelled to Small.

"I can't be controlled or manipulated by anyone. I'm Marty Small. Check the record. And you better stop mouthing off back there," Small yelled toward the front of the shop before sitting back down in his chair.