A barber in Vacaville, California who defied a state order to close up shop to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, is now fighting for his business and may lose his license for his defiance.
Juan Desmarais, owner of Primo's Barbershop, reopened despite the shutdown order at the beginning of May. Him and his team were very transparent and never hid their decision to keep working.
Many Barber shop owners across the world, were stuck between a rock and a hard place. Do you cooperate with the state order or do you continue to keep your doors open to help support your work family, your employees.
Desmarais has no regrets.
"I still stand by it and I would have done it the same way 100 times over regardless of the consequences," he said.
"I took this stand for a reason," Desmarais said. "The number one reason was to show we’re Americans. We’re rebellious in nature. We’re going to stand up for our rights."
In a statement to NBC, a spokesperson for the California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology said, "The Board understands the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected businesses and we are sensitive to that, however, the Board’s purpose is to protect consumers. When guidelines are not followed to the extent that they place consumers at risk, we must take action."
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