About to embark on a move to Germany, airport travel has been weighing on my mind as my departure date gets closer. An organized person might be focusing on practical things like rolling underwear neatly into shoes to obtain maximum use out of every square inch in the suitcase but I am not said organized person. My travel concerns are which vintage suitcase will look best on the baggage claim and which shoes will best compliment the blue bins when going through security. I must not be the only person in the world who is more concerned with the aesthetics of travel than practicality because there is a website entirely devoted to stickers that will “draw attention to your bag and [make] it easily identifiable and sure to make you some new friends.”
“Take a stand against monotonous travel with Suitcase Stickers.”, the Cheeky.com website reads. Running my mouse over the four available stickers, the enlarged images pop up. Three stickers show a suitcase torn away to reveal something “daring” and “risqué”: bundles of money, bags of cocaine, and a plethora of sex toys. The fourth sticker made me catch my breath. Inside the suitcase was a weeping woman bound and gagged. Upon closer inspection I could see that she was an air stewardess and her facial expression is absolutely terrified.
My mind started racing with incredibility that a company was making a $15 profit from this horrifying image of a violated and abused woman. Hadn’t they heard about domestic violence, rape, or sex trafficking? Didn’t they know that this is the reality for thousands upon thousands of women?
Since I have taken a vow of boisterous noise when confronted with injustice I thought I should tell them. I wrote them this letter:
Dear Cheeky.com,
When you created the sticker of a woman bound and gagged in a suitcase I don't think that you were considering the horrifying reality that thousands of women and young girls are trafficked into America every year to become sex slaves. Violence against women isn't cheeky or funny. It's not cleaver or witty to reproduce age old beliefs that women are less valuable than men and that it doesn't matter if they are gagged, beaten, and stuffed into a suitcase like any other object. I'd like to hope you have more educated people on staff who can create products that don't use abused women as the source of a joke.
Please remove this product from your site. And please educate yourself on this issue by visiting sites like www.love146.org and reading books like Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Day Slavery by Siddharth Kara.
Sincerely,
Mamie Adams
I felt satisfied with my response but wondered, who else is getting upset about this enough to do something about it? Further investigation led me to news articles that covered these stickers but they managed to completely fail at discussing the abused woman. One news source described it as “luggage porn” which is alarming that when they think of a woman bound and gagged this reminds them of pornography. Focus was more on the offense to airport personnel rather than the offense to victims of gender violence.
What this sticker shows is that violence against women is treated lightly and as a joke. There is a hardly surprising lack of outcry to TheCheeky.com because it’s not just this one website and it’s not just this one instance that treats violence against women as a comical joke at which to smirk or smile. In the undertones and fabric of our society there is a common and widespread notion that women are worth less than men and are valued more for their sexuality than person-hood.
I have yet to hear a response from TheCheeky.com to my email. But I can smile knowing that I will never be silent when violence against women is used for a joke. When I travel to Germany this fall I hope that wherever in the world I may be, in an airport, in Chicago or Berlin, that I always raise my voice for the voiceless.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Become educated and take action in your community!
More often than not, people assume that prostitution and sex trafficking do not happen in their hometown or city, instead they, like millions of others, believe that sex trafficking and sexual exploitation is an issue that exists only in underdeveloped countries. This misconception blinds the world of the reality. Sexual exploitation is a wide spread, growing issue and is happening in our own backyard-Chicago. Between 16,000 and 24,000 women and girls are impacted by the sex trade in Chicago every day. Not such a small problem, is it? In fact, prostitution is a pervasive issue that affects an immeasurable number of women and girls. These women and girls are frequently victimized and enslaved by pimps and traffickers who use abusive tactics (physical, sexual, psychological) to control and exploit them. Pimping is form of modern day slavery and should not be tolerated in any part of the world, including Chicago.
As part of combating sexual exploitation, CAASE is developing a Community Response Toolkit for community members to raise awareness and to mobilize their communities to work towards ending sexual exploitation. CAASE recognizes that if there weren’t any men purchasing sex, then there would be no prostitution in our communities. Eliminating the demand will ultimately end sexual exploitation. To accomplish this goal, communities need to first become aware of the issue. Next, communities need to continue to create awareness and educate their fellow community members and organizations about the harms of human trafficking and sexual exploitation, and to work with them to identify ways to take action toward change. Communities and its individuals, big or small, can have an amazing impact towards ending sexual exploitation and CAASE encourages everyone to take action towards creating a global world free from sexual harm.
Although the Community Response Toolkit is under development, here are a few action steps that you can begin to take within your community:
1) Attend your neighborhood CAPS meeting - Help refocus the response of law enforcement and community members toward addressing demand by raising awareness of sexual exploitation and the harms to those being prostituted. Advocate that they spend their resources targeting the demand side, not supply. You can encourage your CAPS beat facilitator to invite a guest speaker to speak about prostitution in the community. If you are interested in having someone speak to your community, please contact CAASE.
2) Get involved with district subcommittee meetings - Contact the Community Policing Office in your local district for information on subcommittee meetings. Choose one, such as the domestic violence subcommittee, and attend the monthly meetings to become informed about the issue, as well as to bring issues, such as sexual exploitation, to the table.
3) Use fair trade coffee or have traffick-free chocolate parties – Buy fair trade and traffick-free chocolate and coffee and use them as an entry point for conversations with friends, family, and neighbors about human trafficking, both abroad and in Illinois. Use fair trade coffee at community and private functions and encourage surrounding communities (especially schools, colleges, and local shops) to do the same.
And please encourage others to do the same!
C. O’Leary and O. Howard, The Prostitution of Women and Girls in Metropolitan Chicago: A Preliminary Prevalence Report (Center for Impact Research, 2001)
As part of combating sexual exploitation, CAASE is developing a Community Response Toolkit for community members to raise awareness and to mobilize their communities to work towards ending sexual exploitation. CAASE recognizes that if there weren’t any men purchasing sex, then there would be no prostitution in our communities. Eliminating the demand will ultimately end sexual exploitation. To accomplish this goal, communities need to first become aware of the issue. Next, communities need to continue to create awareness and educate their fellow community members and organizations about the harms of human trafficking and sexual exploitation, and to work with them to identify ways to take action toward change. Communities and its individuals, big or small, can have an amazing impact towards ending sexual exploitation and CAASE encourages everyone to take action towards creating a global world free from sexual harm.
Although the Community Response Toolkit is under development, here are a few action steps that you can begin to take within your community:
1) Attend your neighborhood CAPS meeting - Help refocus the response of law enforcement and community members toward addressing demand by raising awareness of sexual exploitation and the harms to those being prostituted. Advocate that they spend their resources targeting the demand side, not supply. You can encourage your CAPS beat facilitator to invite a guest speaker to speak about prostitution in the community. If you are interested in having someone speak to your community, please contact CAASE.
2) Get involved with district subcommittee meetings - Contact the Community Policing Office in your local district for information on subcommittee meetings. Choose one, such as the domestic violence subcommittee, and attend the monthly meetings to become informed about the issue, as well as to bring issues, such as sexual exploitation, to the table.
3) Use fair trade coffee or have traffick-free chocolate parties – Buy fair trade and traffick-free chocolate and coffee and use them as an entry point for conversations with friends, family, and neighbors about human trafficking, both abroad and in Illinois. Use fair trade coffee at community and private functions and encourage surrounding communities (especially schools, colleges, and local shops) to do the same.
And please encourage others to do the same!
C. O’Leary and O. Howard, The Prostitution of Women and Girls in Metropolitan Chicago: A Preliminary Prevalence Report (Center for Impact Research, 2001)
Thursday, July 15, 2010
A Delicate Balance
Since the moment I interviewed to be a “legal intern” at CAASE, this organization has proved to be unlike any I have ever seen.
Officially, I assist in the “representation of clients who have experienced sexual exploitation.” Specifically, clients are usually victims of either sexual assault or sex trafficking.” In reality, it’s much more complicated than that.
As a legal intern, I work within two distinct arenas: the legal and advocacy fields, and the latter is often referred to as “the movement.” This distinction has been critical to understanding my role and facing the sometimes heartbreaking challenges.
On my first day we went to a meeting with what I describe as some suits from the State’s Attorney’s office to politely disagree with the way they prosecute – or do not prosecute – sexual assault cases. Nice first day, right? It was certainly time for my big girl pants. Put in a more eloquent way, this is the policy side of the job that requires patience and professionalism in the face of a great institutional barrier to justice for victims of sexual violence.
After that introduction into my new world, it was back to the office where all the other interns were buzzing about the upcoming play that CAASE and End Demand Illinois was launching. The two-part play was a depiction of the harsh realties of prostitution and exposed the ignorance about what “the life” does to young girls and women – the same ignorance I saw earlier that day at the State’s Attorney’s office. The only difference was that most people in the audience were already part of the movement, and it was the suits that should have been in attendance.
From that first day, it became clear that on top of all of the emotions I would experience as a result of working with victims of sexual exploitation, I needed to see these different worlds for what they are and appreciate the frustration that would stem from such a dichotomy. In other words, I needed to adjust my expectations for the crowd – the suits of the legal field would need a little more patience.
When I hear a police officer or other criminal justice actor imply that a rape victim becomes less credible because she showered after her assault, because she took a few days to cope with the trauma of what was done to her body, or because she can’t exactly remember what time it was when she was coming in and out of consciousness during the attack, I have to remind myself of the imaginary line between these worlds. I have to remember that not everyone grasps the who, what, where, when, and most importantly, the why of sexual violence against women.
Not to imply that the only troubling side of my internship is the legal field; in fact, I often become frustrated with individuals in the movement. There are the typical divisions that sometimes impede the progress of any issue-based movement, but advocates also sometimes forget about this gap between worlds. What I have learned is that advocates also struggle with this delicate balance. How far do you go to agitate the legal system before inadvertently leaving it in the dust?
What I have learned while working at CAASE is that we cannot expect the criminal justice system to miraculously change, but that we should also never stop shaking the trees in hopes of small victories. Enough adages for you? Here’s one more - I guess it’s all in a day’s work.
Officially, I assist in the “representation of clients who have experienced sexual exploitation.” Specifically, clients are usually victims of either sexual assault or sex trafficking.” In reality, it’s much more complicated than that.
As a legal intern, I work within two distinct arenas: the legal and advocacy fields, and the latter is often referred to as “the movement.” This distinction has been critical to understanding my role and facing the sometimes heartbreaking challenges.
On my first day we went to a meeting with what I describe as some suits from the State’s Attorney’s office to politely disagree with the way they prosecute – or do not prosecute – sexual assault cases. Nice first day, right? It was certainly time for my big girl pants. Put in a more eloquent way, this is the policy side of the job that requires patience and professionalism in the face of a great institutional barrier to justice for victims of sexual violence.
After that introduction into my new world, it was back to the office where all the other interns were buzzing about the upcoming play that CAASE and End Demand Illinois was launching. The two-part play was a depiction of the harsh realties of prostitution and exposed the ignorance about what “the life” does to young girls and women – the same ignorance I saw earlier that day at the State’s Attorney’s office. The only difference was that most people in the audience were already part of the movement, and it was the suits that should have been in attendance.
From that first day, it became clear that on top of all of the emotions I would experience as a result of working with victims of sexual exploitation, I needed to see these different worlds for what they are and appreciate the frustration that would stem from such a dichotomy. In other words, I needed to adjust my expectations for the crowd – the suits of the legal field would need a little more patience.
When I hear a police officer or other criminal justice actor imply that a rape victim becomes less credible because she showered after her assault, because she took a few days to cope with the trauma of what was done to her body, or because she can’t exactly remember what time it was when she was coming in and out of consciousness during the attack, I have to remind myself of the imaginary line between these worlds. I have to remember that not everyone grasps the who, what, where, when, and most importantly, the why of sexual violence against women.
Not to imply that the only troubling side of my internship is the legal field; in fact, I often become frustrated with individuals in the movement. There are the typical divisions that sometimes impede the progress of any issue-based movement, but advocates also sometimes forget about this gap between worlds. What I have learned is that advocates also struggle with this delicate balance. How far do you go to agitate the legal system before inadvertently leaving it in the dust?
What I have learned while working at CAASE is that we cannot expect the criminal justice system to miraculously change, but that we should also never stop shaking the trees in hopes of small victories. Enough adages for you? Here’s one more - I guess it’s all in a day’s work.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Porn Free, Live Free- Mamie Adams
Being an intern at CAASE has taught me many things thus far, and I have found myself connecting and integrating my internship with my life. “Hmm”, I’ve thought to myself, “That color blue on the walls really would work in my living room.” I have also wanted to become a spin instructor, just like Rachel,the Executive Director of CAASE, and have a little dog as cute as Maggie who comes to the office daily. My new found inspiration at CAASE hardly stops there. I have begun to see the world of exploitation in a new light and my own life as well. I must confess I used to be a woman who would watch porn on my own and think that I was sexually empowering myself. “See? I can do it too and wow, aren’t I just the fifth Sex and the City gal to come along!” My interest in porn quickly fizzled since what I find erotic was never represented . But it wasn’t until my internship at CAASE that I truly understood the problems of the porn industry. Watching the movie, “The Price of Pleasure”, certainly ended any doubt in my mind that porn can be good. I have been vegan for some years now and when people think that’s extreme I don’t mind. When exploitation is extreme and prolific, then I don’t mind having an extreme response by not involving myself or participating at all. The same has gone for porn now and I am happy to say that I am porn free. The following essay comes from comparing my past (and present) veganism with my now present anti-porn stance.
What do the porn and fast food industries have in common aside from the fact that they are both an ordinary and daily part of the majority of American’s lives? Exploitation, propagating false information, and devaluing life are the main ingredients of both. While one exploits women, the other, animals. They make a tremendous profit by turning women into “sex objects” and animals into “meat; both being consumable and discard-able.
Fast food corporations turn our survival cravings for food into their marketable gain. Fast food uses unnecessary fat and salt to provide a quick fix to hunger that makes us fill up faster but leaves us only temporarily satisfied and wanting more before long. The industry cleverly disguises the high caloric content and the animal cruelty that goes into their cheap cheeseburgers and milkshakes. In the last few years it has become a trend for a few fast food chains to claim that animals are treated well and they paint a pretty picture of cows and pigs grazing on acres of land. This fabrication of the truth leads people to believe that animals are comfortable and happy to be commodities in the industry. Chipotle touts their treatment of pigs as excellent; however, the motive is solely to ensure a pleasurable taste for the consumer once the animal has been killed.
“Pigs raised in this way are not given antibiotics, and their feed does not contain animal by-products. They are free to roam the pasture, to root in deeply bedded barns, and to socialize with other pigs. We believe pigs that are cared for in this way enjoy happier, healthier lives and produce the best pork we've ever tasted.”
–Chipotle’s official website
Misguiding terms such as cage-free, organic, and free-range are harmful because there is no strict enforcement. The hidden truth is that animals live in horrifying conditions of cruelty, torture, and death. We are too far removed from the realities of factory farming and we wrongly rely on the industries themselves to reassure us of their conduct.
“Farmed animals are routinely tortured as a part of standard agricultural practice. They're debeaked. They're castrated without anesthesia or pain medication on a regular basis. They are treated with disrespect and ignorance, regarded with indifference to their needs and desires, and controlled with intolerance if they resist being dominated. This is the unavoidable reality of an industry that exploits animals for profit.”
-Cayce Mell, co-founder of Oohmahnee Sanctuary
Ensuring the rights of individuals in the pornography industry is just as difficult and as low of a priority. There is not someone present at every video shoot to guarantee that each and every woman feels safe and comfortable with each and every act. Women in pornography are instructed to act as the director sees fit, not how they feel sexually enjoyable. Their forced and faked moans of pleasure are meant for male pleasure, not their own.
The pornography industry thrives on our society’s lack of equality for women. In a society where it is a standard that women earn less than men and where rape victims are treated with disrespect and shame, it is not a surprise that the pornography industry can profit from women’s bodies being used for sex. Women’s bodies are used as a commodity and like any object for sale, they are easily usable, abuse-able, and discard-able.
Consumers of fast food and pornography do not know, and do not want to know the ingredients of what they are purchasing. It is much more preferable to remain blissfully ignorant under the falsities that animals and women are happy and content with their role in these industries. Women enjoy having body-punishing sex with several men in a shoot and animals enjoy eating food all day in cages. The pornography and fast food industries are vocal in supporting and spreading this fallacy. It is outright dangerous and insupportable that these billion-dollar corporations are giving the public the impression that women are empowered in pornography and animals are living an ideal life in cage-free environments. The truth is that many women are sexually exploited for money and paid to look like they enjoy it and animals are trapped in small areas that are deemed “cage-free” by regulations that are far from satisfactory. The notion that women and animals are happy living in exploitive circumstances is steeped in an age old belief that they are too stupid and valueless to live any differently. These industries reinforce the notion that women are born for the sexual pleasure of men and animals are born for the eating pleasure of people.
I call upon you, dear reader, that when you scoff at an adult video store billboard on the highway that you also recognize the exploitation and oppression behind a towering McDonalds sign. We have the power to tear down and put an end to the illusions that the pornography and fast food industries try to sell us. Exploitation is exploitation is exploitation. Please join me in thinking critically about what these industries are doing behind the scenes and how that impacts our society and lives.
What do the porn and fast food industries have in common aside from the fact that they are both an ordinary and daily part of the majority of American’s lives? Exploitation, propagating false information, and devaluing life are the main ingredients of both. While one exploits women, the other, animals. They make a tremendous profit by turning women into “sex objects” and animals into “meat; both being consumable and discard-able.
Fast food corporations turn our survival cravings for food into their marketable gain. Fast food uses unnecessary fat and salt to provide a quick fix to hunger that makes us fill up faster but leaves us only temporarily satisfied and wanting more before long. The industry cleverly disguises the high caloric content and the animal cruelty that goes into their cheap cheeseburgers and milkshakes. In the last few years it has become a trend for a few fast food chains to claim that animals are treated well and they paint a pretty picture of cows and pigs grazing on acres of land. This fabrication of the truth leads people to believe that animals are comfortable and happy to be commodities in the industry. Chipotle touts their treatment of pigs as excellent; however, the motive is solely to ensure a pleasurable taste for the consumer once the animal has been killed.
“Pigs raised in this way are not given antibiotics, and their feed does not contain animal by-products. They are free to roam the pasture, to root in deeply bedded barns, and to socialize with other pigs. We believe pigs that are cared for in this way enjoy happier, healthier lives and produce the best pork we've ever tasted.”
–Chipotle’s official website
Misguiding terms such as cage-free, organic, and free-range are harmful because there is no strict enforcement. The hidden truth is that animals live in horrifying conditions of cruelty, torture, and death. We are too far removed from the realities of factory farming and we wrongly rely on the industries themselves to reassure us of their conduct.
“Farmed animals are routinely tortured as a part of standard agricultural practice. They're debeaked. They're castrated without anesthesia or pain medication on a regular basis. They are treated with disrespect and ignorance, regarded with indifference to their needs and desires, and controlled with intolerance if they resist being dominated. This is the unavoidable reality of an industry that exploits animals for profit.”
-Cayce Mell, co-founder of Oohmahnee Sanctuary
Ensuring the rights of individuals in the pornography industry is just as difficult and as low of a priority. There is not someone present at every video shoot to guarantee that each and every woman feels safe and comfortable with each and every act. Women in pornography are instructed to act as the director sees fit, not how they feel sexually enjoyable. Their forced and faked moans of pleasure are meant for male pleasure, not their own.
The pornography industry thrives on our society’s lack of equality for women. In a society where it is a standard that women earn less than men and where rape victims are treated with disrespect and shame, it is not a surprise that the pornography industry can profit from women’s bodies being used for sex. Women’s bodies are used as a commodity and like any object for sale, they are easily usable, abuse-able, and discard-able.
Consumers of fast food and pornography do not know, and do not want to know the ingredients of what they are purchasing. It is much more preferable to remain blissfully ignorant under the falsities that animals and women are happy and content with their role in these industries. Women enjoy having body-punishing sex with several men in a shoot and animals enjoy eating food all day in cages. The pornography and fast food industries are vocal in supporting and spreading this fallacy. It is outright dangerous and insupportable that these billion-dollar corporations are giving the public the impression that women are empowered in pornography and animals are living an ideal life in cage-free environments. The truth is that many women are sexually exploited for money and paid to look like they enjoy it and animals are trapped in small areas that are deemed “cage-free” by regulations that are far from satisfactory. The notion that women and animals are happy living in exploitive circumstances is steeped in an age old belief that they are too stupid and valueless to live any differently. These industries reinforce the notion that women are born for the sexual pleasure of men and animals are born for the eating pleasure of people.
I call upon you, dear reader, that when you scoff at an adult video store billboard on the highway that you also recognize the exploitation and oppression behind a towering McDonalds sign. We have the power to tear down and put an end to the illusions that the pornography and fast food industries try to sell us. Exploitation is exploitation is exploitation. Please join me in thinking critically about what these industries are doing behind the scenes and how that impacts our society and lives.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Reflections of a Repentant Strip Club Bouncer
Hello, my name is John, and I’m a recovering strip club bouncer (Hi, John).
I am here today to get some things off my chest. To tell you why my conscience has been bothering me for some time. To tell you how I deviated from a value-driven upbringing into a dark age of seedy scheming as a door guy at a number of topless clubs over a five-year span. Unlike most of the unfortunate women who are drawn or forced into the sex industry due to a lack of viable earning options, I had a number of opportunities to work honestly elsewhere. I wasn’t seduced by ‘the game’ because of what friends and customers assumed to be the obvious perks of working with naked, mostly beautiful women; I was enchanted by the green paper than doubles as morality’s kryptonite.
What’s that? You didn’t think bouncers made much money? Think again. In the strip club money is everywhere, and dancers aren’t the only ones exposing themselves to get it.
The most gratifying experiences invariably occur as a result of hard work and sacrifice: Four years of determined studying results in graduation and a degree; commitment and compromise and extensive planning results in a wedding day; long hours in the kitchen baking, blending and basting result in Thanksgiving dinner. There is virtually nothing worth pride that is not owed to some kind of prolonged challenge necessitating its realization. Though the lap dance results in gratification - the male customer satisfies a primitive need to exert control or fill an emotional void while the dancer benefits financially- the sacrifice of time is not progressive. Indeed, the additive effect of each lap dance is regressive in an emotional sense, and in many cases a financial one. Though women in the sex industry might make more money per hour than a woman with an office or restaurant job, the strip club atmosphere is rife with drugs and drinking. In my experience, it was not uncommon to see a dancer end her shift and spend up to six more hours in the club drinking, smoking, and frequently running to her car or bathroom and returning with a sudden violent cough or case of the sniffles. The strip club lifestyle is a powerful, insidious cocoon of temptation that preys on vulnerability through impulse and illusion. Though her flesh and opportunity are the only requisites for a woman to make money- and sometimes very good money- the ironic twist is that in life’s bigger picture, even if she is strong enough to avoid drugs and alcohol, the sacrifices of dignity and physical and emotional health are much more significant and far less rewarding than those required by conventional professional and academic advancement.
The rituals of the strip club are obviously less visceral and risky than those of prostitution, but the underlying premise is the same- trading sex for money- and while it is an easy and convenient arrangement for the male customer and pimp, for the female performer, it is a tragic existence of subjugation, danger, and indignation. This fundamental reality is the foundation of my regret. Though I worked hard each night bussing tables and moving chairs, and taking out the trash and stocking glassware, I made most of my money via two basic methods: 1) accommodating a customer’s lust by selling a dream, and 2) enhancing a dancer’s income by setting her up with customers possessing fat wallets or no discipline or both. Though I was not self-employed, in a technical interpretation of the word I was a pimp due to my role as match-maker and protector, two services for which I was compensated by one or both of the parties involved. As I reflect on my time as a bouncer, I am amazed at how effectively everyone involved lied to each other and themselves in order to pretend that happiness and genuine gratification could come from such an arrangement.
The ‘easy’ theme is prevalent in the strip club:
• It’s easier to deal with life’s problems by taking drugs and drinking to escape rather than meeting them head-on and seeking healthy, productive solutions. The strip club makes most of its money on alcohol sales, and drugs permeate the landscape. The lifestyle is fast and full of false happiness.
• It’s easier for men to pay women for dances and sex than to bridge the emotional and physical rift that has grown between them and their girlfriends or wives. Many customers are married, and if they spend enough in the VIP sections, some dancers go beyond simply dancing to realize a big payday. The line between stripping and outright prostitution would get blurry on weekend nights at the club.
• It’s easier for bouncers to run around the floor facilitating faux-mating rituals and making more money than 25% of the dancers in the club than it is to check IDs at Joe’s pub and make $8-$10/hour. Though there were scrapes from time to time, the bouncers where I worked, including myself, were not very large or intimidating. We preemptively stopped fights before they happened by shaking hands, arranging dances, and behaving like indentured sycophants who made sure not to trip any testosterone triggers.
Social hierarchies form through the competitive pursuit and accumulation of money, and while the strip club is no different than the rest of the world in this regard, the process is more frenzied and overt since there is a limited time frame (a given shift during hours of operation) for each person to secure his or her piece of the pie. Dancers seek big spenders, servers seek tables with big head counts, and bouncers seek to arrange popular dancers with big spenders and good servers with big tables. Though the bouncers pooled money at the end of the night, the green fruit of our pockets reflected each man’s skill at selling fantasy and his level of camaraderie with the girls; it determined a pecking order based on salesmanship and hustling.
My purpose in revealing the inner workings of a strip club is not to justify or rationalize my involvement in the industry, but I want you to understand how good people- people you might call your friends or brothers or sisters- can be drawn to it because of the vast amount of money it offers, and how cold, calculating structure and desensitization can result from being immersed within it. It was incredibly easy making money off of the backs of women, as so many others do, and for this I will forever be ashamed. I think of myself as a good person, and despite my time as a strip club bouncer, I have healthy respect and deferential admiration for women. I am certain, however, that many of the women in my life who I profess to admire would be severely disappointed to hear of my involvement in the sex industry.
This missive is merely the first small flower of a burgeoning realization. I was wrong for being a pimp; for profiting from the ever-present male demand for sexual gratification. I was wrong for letting money overpower the values and good judgment that had previously been my behavioral barometers. I was wrong for being a liar; for telling myself that the ends justified the means. I was wrong for being weak and for choosing the easy path.
To women everywhere, I was wrong, and I am truly sorry.
I am here today to get some things off my chest. To tell you why my conscience has been bothering me for some time. To tell you how I deviated from a value-driven upbringing into a dark age of seedy scheming as a door guy at a number of topless clubs over a five-year span. Unlike most of the unfortunate women who are drawn or forced into the sex industry due to a lack of viable earning options, I had a number of opportunities to work honestly elsewhere. I wasn’t seduced by ‘the game’ because of what friends and customers assumed to be the obvious perks of working with naked, mostly beautiful women; I was enchanted by the green paper than doubles as morality’s kryptonite.
What’s that? You didn’t think bouncers made much money? Think again. In the strip club money is everywhere, and dancers aren’t the only ones exposing themselves to get it.
The most gratifying experiences invariably occur as a result of hard work and sacrifice: Four years of determined studying results in graduation and a degree; commitment and compromise and extensive planning results in a wedding day; long hours in the kitchen baking, blending and basting result in Thanksgiving dinner. There is virtually nothing worth pride that is not owed to some kind of prolonged challenge necessitating its realization. Though the lap dance results in gratification - the male customer satisfies a primitive need to exert control or fill an emotional void while the dancer benefits financially- the sacrifice of time is not progressive. Indeed, the additive effect of each lap dance is regressive in an emotional sense, and in many cases a financial one. Though women in the sex industry might make more money per hour than a woman with an office or restaurant job, the strip club atmosphere is rife with drugs and drinking. In my experience, it was not uncommon to see a dancer end her shift and spend up to six more hours in the club drinking, smoking, and frequently running to her car or bathroom and returning with a sudden violent cough or case of the sniffles. The strip club lifestyle is a powerful, insidious cocoon of temptation that preys on vulnerability through impulse and illusion. Though her flesh and opportunity are the only requisites for a woman to make money- and sometimes very good money- the ironic twist is that in life’s bigger picture, even if she is strong enough to avoid drugs and alcohol, the sacrifices of dignity and physical and emotional health are much more significant and far less rewarding than those required by conventional professional and academic advancement.
The rituals of the strip club are obviously less visceral and risky than those of prostitution, but the underlying premise is the same- trading sex for money- and while it is an easy and convenient arrangement for the male customer and pimp, for the female performer, it is a tragic existence of subjugation, danger, and indignation. This fundamental reality is the foundation of my regret. Though I worked hard each night bussing tables and moving chairs, and taking out the trash and stocking glassware, I made most of my money via two basic methods: 1) accommodating a customer’s lust by selling a dream, and 2) enhancing a dancer’s income by setting her up with customers possessing fat wallets or no discipline or both. Though I was not self-employed, in a technical interpretation of the word I was a pimp due to my role as match-maker and protector, two services for which I was compensated by one or both of the parties involved. As I reflect on my time as a bouncer, I am amazed at how effectively everyone involved lied to each other and themselves in order to pretend that happiness and genuine gratification could come from such an arrangement.
The ‘easy’ theme is prevalent in the strip club:
• It’s easier to deal with life’s problems by taking drugs and drinking to escape rather than meeting them head-on and seeking healthy, productive solutions. The strip club makes most of its money on alcohol sales, and drugs permeate the landscape. The lifestyle is fast and full of false happiness.
• It’s easier for men to pay women for dances and sex than to bridge the emotional and physical rift that has grown between them and their girlfriends or wives. Many customers are married, and if they spend enough in the VIP sections, some dancers go beyond simply dancing to realize a big payday. The line between stripping and outright prostitution would get blurry on weekend nights at the club.
• It’s easier for bouncers to run around the floor facilitating faux-mating rituals and making more money than 25% of the dancers in the club than it is to check IDs at Joe’s pub and make $8-$10/hour. Though there were scrapes from time to time, the bouncers where I worked, including myself, were not very large or intimidating. We preemptively stopped fights before they happened by shaking hands, arranging dances, and behaving like indentured sycophants who made sure not to trip any testosterone triggers.
Social hierarchies form through the competitive pursuit and accumulation of money, and while the strip club is no different than the rest of the world in this regard, the process is more frenzied and overt since there is a limited time frame (a given shift during hours of operation) for each person to secure his or her piece of the pie. Dancers seek big spenders, servers seek tables with big head counts, and bouncers seek to arrange popular dancers with big spenders and good servers with big tables. Though the bouncers pooled money at the end of the night, the green fruit of our pockets reflected each man’s skill at selling fantasy and his level of camaraderie with the girls; it determined a pecking order based on salesmanship and hustling.
My purpose in revealing the inner workings of a strip club is not to justify or rationalize my involvement in the industry, but I want you to understand how good people- people you might call your friends or brothers or sisters- can be drawn to it because of the vast amount of money it offers, and how cold, calculating structure and desensitization can result from being immersed within it. It was incredibly easy making money off of the backs of women, as so many others do, and for this I will forever be ashamed. I think of myself as a good person, and despite my time as a strip club bouncer, I have healthy respect and deferential admiration for women. I am certain, however, that many of the women in my life who I profess to admire would be severely disappointed to hear of my involvement in the sex industry.
This missive is merely the first small flower of a burgeoning realization. I was wrong for being a pimp; for profiting from the ever-present male demand for sexual gratification. I was wrong for letting money overpower the values and good judgment that had previously been my behavioral barometers. I was wrong for being a liar; for telling myself that the ends justified the means. I was wrong for being weak and for choosing the easy path.
To women everywhere, I was wrong, and I am truly sorry.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Kids Are NOT For Sale in Chicago
In alliance with Shared Hope International, we invite you to join us in combating the sexual exploitation of children right here in Chicago by raising awareness about this increasingly prevalent problem through social media. The immediate action item of the organization's Social Media Action Kit can help us spread the word about deterring the purchase of sexual acts from minors by leveraging our social networks to communicate this important message. Concurrently, Shared Hope International--with its local partners--will host rallies, trainings, and events throughout the week of June 19th through the 26th for the community to participate in. Help us spread the word and use social media for REAL change!
Kids Are NOT For Sale in Chicago
Social Media Action Kit
This June, Shared Hope International needs your help to spread an important message in Chicago – Kids are NOT for Sale! By using our Social Media Action Kit, you can make a difference without ever leaving your desk.
Take Action in Chicago!
Throughout the month of June, we need freedom fighters on the internet spreading the word that kids are not for sale in Chicago! By effectively using social media networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs, we can encourage all Chicagoans to take a stand against domestic minor sex trafficking!
We have devised three options for awareness via status updates and tweets that you can use to ring the bell in your community:
a.) Statistics on child sex trafficking in Chicago – It’s happening here!
b.) Links to awareness videos, blogs and news that inform Chicagoans on recent and developing news stories.
c.) Promoting Kids Are NOT For Sale Events in Chicago during the last weeks of June.
Additionally, we have a selection of profile badges to use during your campaigning to help inform friends and fans of your cause. Simply upload these in place of your normal Facebook, Myspace, Twitter or blog profile photo for the duration of our campaign.
Feel free to update your status as many times as you like – your voice is SO IMPORTANT to ending the sale of children on Chicago’s streets.
[Copy and paste the following statements as your daily status update.]
SATURDAY- Chicago’s children are being sold on the streets of Chicago EVERY day for commercial sex. Who will be there to stop buyers and traffickers from stealing their innocence? Rescue kids in your area by raising the alarm that KIDS ARE NOT FOR SALE!
SUNDAY- FACT: Most prostituted women and children in Chicago service an average of 10 men per night.
MONDAY- In a study of women involved in Chicago’s sex trade, 62% percent reported that they started before the age of 18. KIDS are NOT for Sale in Chicago!!
TUESDAY - FACT: As many as 25,000 women and children are prostituted in metropolitan Chicago EVERY YEAR. Wake up Chicago – Kids are NOT for Sale!
WEDNESDAY - 21 is the average age of men purchasing sex in Chicago – we need to say NO and END DEMAND!
THURSDAY - 90% of prostituted women and children in Chicago report being physically and sexually abused at the hands of traffickers and customers. Kids are NOT for Sale!
FRIDAY – In a recent study, Chicago men named Craigslist as the website most frequently used to solicit sexual services. REAL MEN DON’T BUY SEX.
SATURDAY - 70% of women involved in the sex industry in Chicago said they had been recruited by a pimp. The other 30% ended up with a pimp by the time they were interviewed. Learn more @ www.sharedhope.org
ADDITIONAL TWEETS/STATUSES:
• In a study of federal, state and local law enforcement officials based in the Chicago metropolitan area, none of the officers personally encountered any international trafficking cases, only domestic cases of commercial sexual exploitation of children.
• Men are soliciting sex with women and minors EVERY DAY in Chicago! Visit http://www.chicagopolice.org/ps/ to see the faces of some who were caught.
• 90: the percentage of Chicago’s sex trade that occurs through “legal” establishments such as escort services, strip clubs and massage parlors. This includes commercial sex with minors and foreign victims. Help END DEMAND!!
• A survey of men who purchased commercial sex revealed that 87% believed women freely choose to enter prostitution; 62% believed the majority of women in prostitution are fully informed about the nature of the sex trade before entry.
• Research shows that 100% of prostitutes in Chicago have experienced some type of violence while in the sex trade. This includes being raped, kicked, threatened with a weapon, punched and slapped.
Links to Information on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking
1. The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is PROOF that at least 100,000 American children are being prostituted every year in cities and towns across the U.S. Read more @ www.sharedhope.org
2. If there was no buyer to feed the demand for commercial sex with minors, there would be no market, and there would be no victim. We need to END DEMAND!
3. Spread the word about child sex trafficking in America through this short four minute video. Kids are NOT for Sale in America!
4. American children are being sold into commercial sex – watch this short video and post this onto as many statuses as possible – Kids are NOT For Sale! http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=31723758&id=14502300#!/video/video.php?v=398378178888
For more information, please visit: http://www.sharedhope.org/what/chicago.asp
Kids Are NOT For Sale in Chicago
Social Media Action Kit
This June, Shared Hope International needs your help to spread an important message in Chicago – Kids are NOT for Sale! By using our Social Media Action Kit, you can make a difference without ever leaving your desk.
Take Action in Chicago!
Throughout the month of June, we need freedom fighters on the internet spreading the word that kids are not for sale in Chicago! By effectively using social media networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs, we can encourage all Chicagoans to take a stand against domestic minor sex trafficking!
We have devised three options for awareness via status updates and tweets that you can use to ring the bell in your community:
a.) Statistics on child sex trafficking in Chicago – It’s happening here!
b.) Links to awareness videos, blogs and news that inform Chicagoans on recent and developing news stories.
c.) Promoting Kids Are NOT For Sale Events in Chicago during the last weeks of June.
Additionally, we have a selection of profile badges to use during your campaigning to help inform friends and fans of your cause. Simply upload these in place of your normal Facebook, Myspace, Twitter or blog profile photo for the duration of our campaign.
Feel free to update your status as many times as you like – your voice is SO IMPORTANT to ending the sale of children on Chicago’s streets.
[Copy and paste the following statements as your daily status update.]
SATURDAY- Chicago’s children are being sold on the streets of Chicago EVERY day for commercial sex. Who will be there to stop buyers and traffickers from stealing their innocence? Rescue kids in your area by raising the alarm that KIDS ARE NOT FOR SALE!
SUNDAY- FACT: Most prostituted women and children in Chicago service an average of 10 men per night.
MONDAY- In a study of women involved in Chicago’s sex trade, 62% percent reported that they started before the age of 18. KIDS are NOT for Sale in Chicago!!
TUESDAY - FACT: As many as 25,000 women and children are prostituted in metropolitan Chicago EVERY YEAR. Wake up Chicago – Kids are NOT for Sale!
WEDNESDAY - 21 is the average age of men purchasing sex in Chicago – we need to say NO and END DEMAND!
THURSDAY - 90% of prostituted women and children in Chicago report being physically and sexually abused at the hands of traffickers and customers. Kids are NOT for Sale!
FRIDAY – In a recent study, Chicago men named Craigslist as the website most frequently used to solicit sexual services. REAL MEN DON’T BUY SEX.
SATURDAY - 70% of women involved in the sex industry in Chicago said they had been recruited by a pimp. The other 30% ended up with a pimp by the time they were interviewed. Learn more @ www.sharedhope.org
ADDITIONAL TWEETS/STATUSES:
• In a study of federal, state and local law enforcement officials based in the Chicago metropolitan area, none of the officers personally encountered any international trafficking cases, only domestic cases of commercial sexual exploitation of children.
• Men are soliciting sex with women and minors EVERY DAY in Chicago! Visit http://www.chicagopolice.org/ps/ to see the faces of some who were caught.
• 90: the percentage of Chicago’s sex trade that occurs through “legal” establishments such as escort services, strip clubs and massage parlors. This includes commercial sex with minors and foreign victims. Help END DEMAND!!
• A survey of men who purchased commercial sex revealed that 87% believed women freely choose to enter prostitution; 62% believed the majority of women in prostitution are fully informed about the nature of the sex trade before entry.
• Research shows that 100% of prostitutes in Chicago have experienced some type of violence while in the sex trade. This includes being raped, kicked, threatened with a weapon, punched and slapped.
Links to Information on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking
1. The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is PROOF that at least 100,000 American children are being prostituted every year in cities and towns across the U.S. Read more @ www.sharedhope.org
2. If there was no buyer to feed the demand for commercial sex with minors, there would be no market, and there would be no victim. We need to END DEMAND!
3. Spread the word about child sex trafficking in America through this short four minute video. Kids are NOT for Sale in America!
4. American children are being sold into commercial sex – watch this short video and post this onto as many statuses as possible – Kids are NOT For Sale! http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=31723758&id=14502300#!/video/video.php?v=398378178888
For more information, please visit: http://www.sharedhope.org/what/chicago.asp
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
A Census-Taker's Reflection on Peddling Porn
Lara Janson, a former Comcast employee and now Census-taker, contributes an insightful blog post on the Huffington Post on her reflection of the porn industry and its inconspicuous entry into the homes of our communities.
"When I took a job peddling Comcast door-to-door in Latino areas of Chicago, I did not realize that the question of pornography would be a routine part of my job. And even when I began asking each of my customers if they did want Playboy, I did not make an immediate mental connection between my principal career combating human trafficking and my involvement with Comcast. Well, I did make one connection when I made the decision to start selling Comcast services: I thought the job would keep my Spanish fresh, thus better preparing me to communicate with potential Latina victims I might encounter in my anti-human trafficking work. Little did I know that the vocabulary I would use to ask customers about "pay-per-view" channels would parallel only too closely the terminology I have used in strip clubs when conducting outreach to Latina sex trafficking victims."
Read more here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lara-janson/the-price-of-peddling-por_b_569242.html
"When I took a job peddling Comcast door-to-door in Latino areas of Chicago, I did not realize that the question of pornography would be a routine part of my job. And even when I began asking each of my customers if they did want Playboy, I did not make an immediate mental connection between my principal career combating human trafficking and my involvement with Comcast. Well, I did make one connection when I made the decision to start selling Comcast services: I thought the job would keep my Spanish fresh, thus better preparing me to communicate with potential Latina victims I might encounter in my anti-human trafficking work. Little did I know that the vocabulary I would use to ask customers about "pay-per-view" channels would parallel only too closely the terminology I have used in strip clubs when conducting outreach to Latina sex trafficking victims."
Read more here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lara-janson/the-price-of-peddling-por_b_569242.html
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