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September 3, 2009 | Registration Begins 6:30 PM | Event 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
United Way Building | 1922 The Alameda, Rm 107 | San Jose, CA 95126
Uncovering the true health cost of a $16 manicure: nail salon workers (mostly immigrant women of color) are chronically exposed to harmful chemicals. Community organizers are leading the charge for social justice in the nail salon industry.
Moderator and Panelists Include:
- Momo Chang, Freelance Writer
- Theresa Le, UFCW5, California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative
- Le Phan, MA, Graduate Student in Sociology, UC Davis
- Lenh Tsan, Project Manager, Asian Law Caucus, California Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative
View below for panelist bios
Momo Chang is a freelance journalist based in Oakland, California. Her writings focus on Asian American communities, communities of color, and youth culture. She is a former staff writer at the Oakland Tribune, where she covered Asian American communities. Her stories range from uncovering work conditions in nail salons, to stories about “invisible minorities” like Tongan youth and Iu Mien communities. Momo has received local and national awards for her writing, including the Ida B. Wells Journalist for Justice Award from the Center for Media Justice. She has written for the East Bay Express, San Francisco Bay Guardian and ColorLines, among other publications. She is also an editor, writer and blogger for Hyphen, a national Asian American magazine focusing on arts, politics and culture.
Theresa Le is the Special Projects Organizer for UFCW 5 Cosmetology Division that represents Manicurists, Estheticians, Cosmetologists, and Salon Owners in dealing with the Board of Barbering & Cosmetology (BBC). BBC’s mission is to ensure the health and safety of California consumers by promoting ethical standards and by enforcing the laws of the beauty industry. Theresa is responsible for strategizing and organizing multiple tri-lingual campaigns (English-Vietnamese-Spanish) to build positive consumer awareness, increase membership enrollment, and combine traditional and innovative marketing methods to build synergy between policy makers and industry practicioners. Her work philosophy is “Your Net Worth is defined by Your Network!”
Currently, Theresa’s Cosmetology campaign focuses on:
Salon Consumer Protection
Green-Purchasing Manufacturers
Advanced Education for the industry members learning about the 5 P’s
Board of Barbering & Cosmetology (BBC) citations prevention
Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) protection
Maximizing profits through A.R.I.E.S (Awareness.Responses.
Interaction.Evaluation.Sale)
Fair Labor practices
Grassroots promotions
Prior to joining UFCW Local 5, Theresa was a licensed manicurist and an eyelash extension educator who owned and operated a full-service salon in San Diego since 2005. She also coordinated Donald Trump’s Miss Universe 2008 Pageant hosted in Vietnam in the summer of 2008. Theresa graduated Cum Laude from University of California, Riverside with a bachelor’s degree in Business Economics.
Le Phan is a fifth year Ph.D. student in Sociology at the University of California, Davis. She received her bachelor’s degree in Ethnic Studies with a minor in History at the University of California, San Diego. Her research interest encompasses a wide range of areas including race, ethnicity, immigration, gender and family. Her most recent research project explores the work experiences of first and second generation Vietnamese nail technicians in Northern California. As a teaching assistant, she has experience in numerous Sociology and Asian American Studies courses. She is involved in various organizations on campus and throughout her community including a graduate student organization that provides support for graduate students interested in Asian American Studies. Le is committed to raising awareness about issues affecting Asians and Asian Americans. She is also passionate about empowering Asian American youth through education and research.
Lenh Tsan, Project Manager at the Asian Law Caucus, is a graduate of UC Davis’ Sociology Department. While in Davis, she worked at the International House to promote dialogue between immigrant families of different backgrounds in Yolo County. At the Caucus, she works with the Immigrant Rights Project to defend low income immigrants. On the Nail Salon Project, she conducts occupational health and safety trainings to salon workers and owners, who are predominantly Vietnamese immigrant women. Since joining the Caucus in 2005, she has conducted over 250 of these trainings in the nail salons, cosmetology schools, and occupational health classes and has outreached to over 500 workers, students, and nail salon owners in the bay area. She works to mobilize workers to publicly speak about the hazards they face and to advocate for their rights to work in a healthy and safe environment. She is fluent in Vietnamese, Cantonese, and Mandarin.
