Judging RedEye by its Covers

Last week, Chicagoans learned about a proposed law that would tax strip clubs $5 per customer to fund rape crisis services in Illinois. News quickly went viral about the law. State Senator Toi Hutchinson and Lt. Governor Sheila Simon support the bill, which is an advocacy effort of the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault. CAASE supports this proposed tax, and we have a lot of work to do addressing how our local media talk about this issue and violence against women in general. RedEye, Chicago’s free newspaper, broke the story with a cover that looked like this:

RedEye set the tone and brought the conversation down to the basest level possible. A caption could have been: “Women in strip clubs are simply body parts you can buy and tax.”

Senator Hutchinson did a great job re-framing the conversation in a press conference. “This is an important conversation,” she said. “There’s a connection between this industry and the objectification of women that allows rape to continue, and that’s a fact." She continued: “Women are whole human beings with hearts and spirits and minds. We’re not a collection of body parts that are for sale." She must have been facing some smirks in the audience, because she added, "This is nothing to laugh about. It’s up to every one of us that the conversation is where it ought to be.”

Violence against women is routinely trivialized and glamorized in order to sell, sell, sell. (If you’re not familiar with this problem, see the awesome new film, Miss Representation.) Women in the commercial sex trade are snickered at, blamed, dehumanized. So what does the media have to say about all this?

Today on WBEZ, a media panel (Scott Smith of Chicago Magazine and Jen Sabella of Huffington Post Chicago) talked briefly about the use of the word “ass” on the RedEye cover and the image of a woman’s feet in apparent “stripper shoes.” They quickly summarized that the cover was tailored to RedEye’s audience, a group that will only pick up and read the most salacious stories. Smith likened it to the old timey days of news boys hawking headlines to sell papers, when the veracity of the message on the cover didn't matter, really, as long as it motivated people to read a well-researched story.

Of course, he’s right. This is absolutely how RedEye is operating, or we never would have seen that cover. The inside story was fair and informative, but covers matter too.

That cover should have been about the perpetration of sexual violence. It should have been about how women in strip clubs (and women who live near the clubs) experience harassment and sexual assault. It should have been about efforts to end exploitation. Let's demand that our local media elevate the conversation.  Tell the RedEye that it matters to you what they put on their covers, in their pages, and on their website. Send an email or a letter to the editor urging them not to objectify women or trivialize sexual violence (email ritaredeye@tribune.com).

See the whole press conference (CAASE's Lynne Johnson speaks about our End Demand Illinois campaign!) with Senator Hutchinson and Lt. Governor Simon below, and stay tuned for more.

Share Valentines from CAASE

As signs of Valentine's Day are everywhere, we've been thinking: What does love mean for CAASE?
For us... 


Love means a world without sexual exploitation.
Love means ending sexual violence.
Love means young men (and young women!) becoming allies to end sex trafficking.
What does love mean to you?

Show your love by making a donation to CAASE in someone’s honor this Valentine’s Day.

We can send your Valentines an email letting them know about the special gift.*
Donations help support all of CAASE's work, which includes:

• Offering free legal representation to survivors of sexual assault and abuse.
• Advocating for new laws and policies to help survivors of the sex trade in Illinois.
• Educating more young men about the harms of the sex trade and empowering them to be allies in the movement to end sexual violence.

Make Your Valentine Donation Here.

*Please note: If you are making a gift in someone’s honor and would like us to send them an e-Valentine from you, please include their name and email address in the comments field of the online form, or give us a call at 773-244-2230 ext 7. We will send these e-Valentines on Feb. 14.

Reflections on Mamet's Take on Race (and Gender and Sex and Exploitation)

 

When a rich, powerful white man rapes a woman of color, how do our culture and our legal system react? These questions are central in David Mamet’s play Race, which is running at the Goodman Theater through February 19. Earlier this week, CAASE participated in a panel discussion at the theater with other advocates, examining constructs of sexual violence. (Spoiler alert—we talk about details from the play in this post.)

A few of us from the CAASE staff have seen the play, and in addition to dealing with the issues of race, sexual assault, and sexism, we believe the play also touches on exploitation within the sex trade. Some in the audience didn’t notice prostitution in the plot, or disagreed that it was present. However, Charles (the character who is accused of rape) admits that he gave the victim money and that he exploited her. At one point he asks his attorney, “Just because I gave her money, does that mean I paid her?”

I personally noticed that once it was revealed that the victim was in prostitution, the attorney characters shifted their attitudes in a way that could be summarize as: “Sure, he was a racist, but how could he have raped a prostituted woman?” This underscored the terrible myth that a woman in prostitution cannot be raped—that once money is exchanged, a woman gives up her right to say no.

These and many other criticisms were raised at the panel discussion. Caleb Probst, CAASE’s education outreach associate, spoke on the panel about how he teaches young men in high school about the realities of the sex trade. Caleb was in excellent company, as the panel featured Aishah Shahidah Simmons, producer, writer and director of NO! The Rape Documentary; Sharmili Majmudar, executive director of Rape Victim Advocates; Rachel Caidor, founder of INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence, and was moderated by Alison Cuddy, host of WBEZ's Eight Forty-Eight.

Several members of the panel were concerned that Mamet used sexual assault as a plot device to talk about race, and that the play perpetuated many myths about sexual assault. As Sharmili Majmudar pointed out, Race makes it seem like it’s very easy for a woman to make an accusation of rape. Sharmili also reflected on how we never hear the victim’s voice in Race, and this absence dehumanizes the victim.

Aishah Shahidah was deeply concerned about the use of racist and misogynist language in the play and felt like those hateful words were coming from Mamet himself. When an audience member asked if rape should ever be portrayed in art, Aishah recommended Ruined, a play by Lynne Nottage about rape in the Congo.

Rachel Caidor reported that when she attended the play, the audience seemed confused by the intersection of racism and sexism, and that people were laughing at moments that made her concerned. (I also noticed that people were laughing, sometimes out of discomfort.) Rachel balked at the idea that the character who was accused of rape didn’t know that he was racist. “You’re not an accidental racist or a rapist.”

Certainly, Mamet is a divisive playwright, but I believe the discussion that ensued at the Goodman was excellent. Have you seen or read this play? Do you think that it does a good job of addressing these issues, or does it fail? Again, Race runs at the Goodman through next week (student and day-of tickets are available at a discount),

Leave us a comment and have a great weekend!

The Good News and Bad News about Johns' Arrests

There is good news from Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart today that there has been another “National Day of Johns Arrests.” According to the release, Dart led a nationwide, 10-day effort. From the release: “A total of 314 sex buyers also known as “Johns” were arrested and charged with nearly $475,000 in fines.”  

End Demand Illinois is proud to see that one of our law enforcement partners is holding johns, pimps and traffickers accountable. We were also glad to hear that prostituted people were “offered services and safe housing opportunities to assist them in leaving their current situation.” So many people in prostitution are there because they face no other choices, but a person buying sex is almost always there by choice.

While this is an important shift and a glimmer of hope, we must also realize that the majority of prostitution-related arrests in this country are still of prostituted women, and not the men who buy sex. Johns are not usually held accountable for the harm they cause, and that is why they continue to buy sex. We applaud Sheriff Dart for his leadership, and urge you to take action in your own communities to encourage law enforcement to address demand. We still read stories every day, like this one out of Springfield, where a woman is arrested and the john is either let go or goes unmentioned. The headline says it all: "Woman accused of prostitution." You can take action:

Sign up for our End Demand Illinois' Action Alerts here.

If you see a story in your local paper about women being arrested, but no mention of johns, pimps or traffickers, write a letter to the editor. Call you local representatives and tell them that you want to end demand in your neighborhood. Find ways to end harm and demand change using our toolkit with easy action steps. Visit www.caase.org and www.enddemandillinois.org to learn more.

Mt. Prospect Pimp Convicted of Sex Trafficking

Further proof that sex trafficking is a local problem, Alex Campbell was convicted in a federal trial for selling women and girls out of a massage parlor in the Chicago suburb of Mt. Prospect. Campbell recruited and prostituted women using force, fraud, and coercion and had his name tattooed on their bodies to claim his ownership. While CAASE applauds this successful conviction of a known sex trafficker, we also urge the community to hold the men who purchase sex (johns) accountable, as well. Johns come from all walks of life, races, religions, and economic classes, and they are directly responsible for fueling the perpetual demand of sex trafficking. 

It is great to see that Alex Campbell was convicted, especially after the dramatic journey of his prosecution. You may recall that a witness in this case recognized the previous defense lawyer as a patron of the massage parlor. While the defense attorney claimed that he had never bought sex and simply went for a massage, he was dismissed from the case. We are glad to see that the prior histrionics surrounding this case did not prevent justice being served.

This case dispels the common misconception that the women employed in these massage parlors are there by choice. Typically, johns pay a house fee of $60 - $90 per half hour or hour plus occasional tips; the women are pressured to "please the customer" in order to receive tips.  These unpredictable tips are the women's sole source of income to pay the numerous fees and interest rates they are charged by the network. The men who frequent these establishments are knowingly there to buy sex, fueling the demand for trafficked women.

In a CAASE study of 113 johns, 20 % of interviewees thought that they had bought sex from women who were trafficked from other countries. Many more certainly purchased sex from trafficked women without realizing it or caring. CAASE supports the continued prosecution of sex traffickers, and also urges law enforcement to focus more attention on demand. To learn more about how you can help end demand, visit End Demand, IL.

This post is from Lauren Rankin, CAASE's communications intern.

Strip Club Owners Took $3 Million in Fees from Women Dancers

News broke today that strip club owners in Elgin, Illinois, allegedly earned more than $3 million in fees from women who danced in their venue. They are under investigation for not reporting this money for taxes. Sadly, the fact that this much money was earned in a strip club is not surprising. Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation urges the community to become aware of the exploitation that occurs in strip clubs throughout Chicagoland. From the Chicago Tribune:

"Buttitta and his son received about $3,704,959 from “house” fees they collected from women for each shift they worked as dancers at Blackjacks, according to the U.S. attorney's office."

Some people believe that stripping makes women rich. Instead, they are often indebted to the club indefinitely. From our fact sheet:

As soon as a woman begins dancing at a club, it can cost her money rather than being a lucrative job. Many of the women who dance at strip clubs or strip for a house-call company are hired as independent contractors instead of as employees and are therefore not paid a salary or hourly wages. Despite this classification, the clubs maintain enormous control over the women, setting their schedules and hours and setting the prices a dancer can charge for table or private dances.

Additionally, the women often pay the club stage fees or “rent,” sometimes as high as $150 per night. In addition, women pay the club a commission of up to 20% from private dances and tips. Many clubs also require dancers to “tip out”—sharing a percentage of what they earn with the bartender, waitresses, bouncers, house mother, and DJ.

Strip clubs and other indoor venues are also recruiting grounds for pimps and traffickers. In this video, Olivia describes how she was forced into the sex trade after taking a job as a dancer at a Chicago strip club. 

Take action by signing up for our End Demand Illinois action alerts here. 

To learn more about the harms that strip clubs cause to women, please visit our fact sheets.

Kristof Takes on Pimps, Backpage.com

Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times posted a column today about pimps who are using websites like Backpage.com to facilitate the trafficking of girls as young as 13. We’re heartened that the issue of domestic sex trafficking is receiving more attention and that pimps are being seen for what they really are--traffickers. Kristof calls for the shut down of websites that are making it easy on pimps:

“It’s true that there’s some risk that pimps will migrate to new Web sites, possibly based overseas, that are less cooperative. But, on balance, that’s a risk worth taking. The present system is failing. Pimps aren’t the shrewdest marketers, and eliminating a hub for trafficking should at least chip away at the problem.“

Kristof points out that ordering a girl for sex off the internet is as easy as ordering a pizza. That's not the first time we've heard that comparison, and he's sadly very right: When Rachel Durchslag, CAASE's executive director, interviewed 113 johns in Chicago, on purchaser said: "I usually call for a girl, you know, like a pizza.” There are so many disturbing things happening there--a girl being a commodity, available to order--it's important to know that johns are a driving force as much as pimps are.
 

Kristof identifies the issue of encouraging law enforcement to go after pimps in the first place, and we are fortunate locally that Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez and Sheriff Tom Dart are embracing the End Demand approach. We’ve seen signs of progress in Illinois, with local stings that led to the arrests of more than 10 traffickers and 27 johns.

There is much more to be done, however, and you can help address this problem in Illinois. Through our End Demand Illinois campaign, prevention curriculum for young men and direct legal services for survivors of the sex trade, CAASE is working to hold perpetrators accountable and advocating for supportive services for survivors of the sex trade. You can:

1. Sign up for the End Demand Illinois Action Alerts to keep up with the latest news and advocacy efforts. If you're already signed up, share Kristof's article with a friend and ask them to sign up!

2. Bring CAASE’s curriculum for young men to a high school near you. Our instructor talks to the students about the realities of the commercial sex trade and human trafficking. Young men are asked to consider how pressures to “be a man” can influence their decisions to patronize the sex trade.


3. Make a donation to support CAASE’s work, which includes legal services for survivors of the sex trade.

For more information visit www.caase.org and www.enddemandillinois.org