How beauticians are being trained to spot signs of domestic violence around their clients

Nov. 29--As they style hair, do manicures and pedicures, or give someone a facial, salon professionals are close enough in proximity -- and by relationship -- to spot signs of domestic violence in their clients.

They have an opportunity to become trusted confidants in a safe and comfortable environment, and, more importantly, could offer the moral support and information that might lead a victim to get help.

That's the thinking behind an educational program called Cut It Out, presented by organizations that serve victims of domestic violence.

When Tam Nguyen, founder and president of Advance Beauty College in Garden Grove, heard about the program, he knew right away that he wanted to bring it to the thousands of students who train yearly at his school's two locations in Orange County.

Nguyen sees practitioners in the beauty industry as "professional caretakers" who make connections through the power of touch: "They touch the hands and feet of human beings on a daily basis and form deep relationships with customers and clients that depend on them."

Preventing domestic violence

Nguyen learned of Cut It Out from Maricela Rios-Faust, who heads Human Options, an organization that has worked for decades to break the cycle of domestic abuse.

The two sit on a diversity and inclusion board at the nonprofit OneOC and got to talking about Cut It Out.

A national program of the Professional Beauty Association, the Cut It Out training was started in 2003 by The Women's Fund of Greater Birmingham and the Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Along with Laura's House, Human Options is one of two domestic violence prevention agencies that presents the Cut It Out program in Orange County.

In 2017, Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law legislation that mandates that beauticians, barbers and stylists undergo such training on sexual assault and domestic violence when applying for or renewing a license.

So far Human Options has put on seven Cut It Out presentations.

One of the first took place at Hair Concepts in Huntington Beach, whose nine salon professionals asked for the session in part because of the deadly 2011 assault at Salon Meritage in Seal Beach.

It was the worst mass killing in Orange County, with only one survivor among the nine people shot in a child custody battle.

A unique position

The 150 or so aspiring salon professionals assembled Tuesday, Nov. 28, inside the Garden Grove location of Advance Beauty College was the largest group that Human Options community educator Roxanne Vidrio has introduced to Cut It Out.

Most were women training to become manicurists. But there were also aspiring cosmetologists and estheticians, along with several men studying to be barbers.

The presentation lasted an hour, with a slideshow of the various points she was covering reflected on a wall behind Vidrio. At the end, she encouraged the students to take some of the Cut It Out information cards she brought that included resources for victims.

Vidrio told them that their chosen profession puts them in a unique position to notice a bruise on the arm, a missing fingernail, a bald spot where a chunk of hair may have been pulled. A beauty salon is sometimes the only place a victim might be allowed to visit alone, she said.

If they do spot the signs of abuse, their next step is to let the client know they are there to listen -- and if the client wants it -- that they have information about potential help.

"Probably the scariest part," Vidrio said, "is when they say, 'Yes, I am a victim.'"

That's what worried 25-year-old Francisco Valentino, an aspiring barber. This was the first time he had any kind of a formal lesson on the dynamics of domestic violence.

As he prepared to practice a french braid on a bewigged mannequin head, Valentino shared that he would like another session that included role playing on how to respond when someone reveals they are being abused.

"Who am I to step in? All I can do is give them the card," he said. "How do I know they'll take that step?"

The majority of the students were fairly recent immigrants with limited English skills, so Tam Nguyen alternated with Vidrio to provide translation in Vietnamese. Many took handwritten notes.

Ngoc Le of Westminster, who is studying cosmetology, also snapped photographs of the slideshow on her cellphone. She explained afterward, as Tam Nguyen translated, that there are people in her personal life who may be victims of abuse.

"I believe I can help individuals even outside of my profession," said Le, 48, who expects to graduate from Advance Beauty College in April. "I took a lot of notes today that I already texted and sent to people I know who can use this information."

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