1
00:02:01,055 --> 00:02:03,156
My name is Andrea Werhun.
2
00:02:03,190 --> 00:02:06,027
I'm a writer and performer,
and I'm...
3
00:02:06,060 --> 00:02:08,863
also a sex worker.
4
00:02:12,967 --> 00:02:14,535
In books, movies,
5
00:02:14,569 --> 00:02:17,170
and every syndicated crime
drama imaginable,
6
00:02:17,204 --> 00:02:20,508
sex workers are typically
portrayed as victims
7
00:02:20,541 --> 00:02:22,175
or villains.
8
00:02:22,209 --> 00:02:25,145
Shame and stigma
can silence us.
9
00:02:25,178 --> 00:02:27,882
It's high time we told our
own damn stories.
10
00:02:27,915 --> 00:02:29,617
Here's mine.
11
00:02:31,184 --> 00:02:32,720
In my early 20s,
12
00:02:32,754 --> 00:02:34,321
I worked as an escort.
13
00:02:34,354 --> 00:02:36,189
Clients hired me
to a play a role,
14
00:02:36,223 --> 00:02:38,760
and I love to perform.
15
00:02:38,793 --> 00:02:41,161
It wasn't always glamourous.
16
00:02:41,194 --> 00:02:44,832
Can I jizz on your titties,
baby?
17
00:02:44,866 --> 00:02:47,135
That costs extra, baby.
18
00:02:49,570 --> 00:02:53,808
And I wasn't always the
professional you see here.
19
00:02:55,175 --> 00:02:58,112
Here it comes, baby.
20
00:02:58,146 --> 00:02:59,747
Here it comes!
21
00:03:02,116 --> 00:03:03,618
Once upon a time,
22
00:03:03,651 --> 00:03:06,386
I was a university student
with a dream.
23
00:03:08,556 --> 00:03:12,259
A dream of making more than
minimum wage.
24
00:03:12,292 --> 00:03:16,496
I quickly realized the power of
a little unzipping.
25
00:03:35,248 --> 00:03:39,554
I went to university to study
English literature.
26
00:03:39,587 --> 00:03:43,157
That was my major,
and I minored in religion.
27
00:03:43,191 --> 00:03:45,459
The first time I went to
a strip club,
28
00:03:45,492 --> 00:03:48,228
what I saw was a kind of
sexy church.
29
00:03:48,261 --> 00:03:51,833
I saw these poled priestesses
on the stage,
30
00:03:51,866 --> 00:03:56,771
being worshipped by this doting
male congregation
31
00:03:56,804 --> 00:03:59,439
who are, you know, being given
the opportunity
32
00:03:59,473 --> 00:04:02,744
to go to confession for like,
$20 a song.
33
00:04:02,777 --> 00:04:06,581
And so I thought,
"I want to do that."
34
00:04:06,614 --> 00:04:09,249
And I did eventually become
a stripper.
35
00:04:09,282 --> 00:04:11,018
More on that later.
36
00:04:11,052 --> 00:04:14,454
I had a friend in one of the
classes I was taking in school
37
00:04:14,488 --> 00:04:17,558
tell me that I should consider
escorting instead.
38
00:04:17,592 --> 00:04:20,528
One night, I noticed that all
the stories I'd penned
39
00:04:20,561 --> 00:04:22,329
for my creative writing class
40
00:04:22,362 --> 00:04:25,465
involved the exchange of sex
for money.
41
00:04:28,236 --> 00:04:29,737
It became clear...
42
00:04:29,771 --> 00:04:32,907
Whoredom is your destiny...
43
00:04:32,940 --> 00:04:33,975
Whoredom is...
44
00:04:34,008 --> 00:04:36,177
...your destiny!
45
00:04:40,515 --> 00:04:43,350
And how does one
become a sex worker?
46
00:04:43,383 --> 00:04:46,554
Well, let me show you.
47
00:04:46,587 --> 00:04:48,756
Under the cover of darkness,
48
00:04:48,790 --> 00:04:51,826
I stalked the streets like
a cat in heat,
49
00:04:51,859 --> 00:04:54,762
fondling for society's
sexy underbelly.
50
00:04:56,664 --> 00:04:57,965
Password?
51
00:05:02,069 --> 00:05:04,138
Come in.
52
00:05:10,011 --> 00:05:13,614
Cloaked in the darkness of
night and little else,
53
00:05:13,648 --> 00:05:17,552
I penetrated a secret set of
sinful sluts.
54
00:05:19,153 --> 00:05:20,487
Just kidding.
55
00:05:20,521 --> 00:05:22,690
I looked up escort agencies,
56
00:05:22,723 --> 00:05:24,225
picked the best-looking
website,
57
00:05:24,258 --> 00:05:26,594
and sent them an email.
58
00:05:29,030 --> 00:05:32,233
And they contacted me
immediately for an interview,
59
00:05:32,266 --> 00:05:33,835
which opened with...
60
00:05:33,868 --> 00:05:35,036
You got the job.
61
00:05:35,069 --> 00:05:36,637
Oh.
62
00:05:37,638 --> 00:05:38,973
Great.
63
00:05:39,006 --> 00:05:41,474
The agency owners were a
suburban couple
64
00:05:41,509 --> 00:05:44,178
- named Trina and Craig.
- Here's how it works.
65
00:05:44,212 --> 00:05:46,714
We'll do your advertising
for you.
66
00:05:46,747 --> 00:05:48,516
I'll pick you up,
drop you off.
67
00:05:48,549 --> 00:05:51,118
You collect the money and
text me that it's all good.
68
00:05:51,152 --> 00:05:52,954
I'll start the clock,
you do the deed,
69
00:05:52,987 --> 00:05:55,289
and I'll wait outside and let
you know when the hour is up.
70
00:05:55,323 --> 00:05:56,991
- Any questions?
- Yeah.
71
00:05:57,024 --> 00:05:58,793
Do you provide the condoms?
72
00:05:58,826 --> 00:06:00,360
No.
73
00:06:00,393 --> 00:06:01,796
Okay. Um...
74
00:06:01,829 --> 00:06:04,799
How often should I get
an STI test?
75
00:06:04,832 --> 00:06:06,334
Like, every month?
76
00:06:06,366 --> 00:06:08,870
Every month would probably
be too much.
77
00:06:08,903 --> 00:06:12,306
And how likely is it that
I would get an STI?
78
00:06:12,340 --> 00:06:13,975
Uh, not likely.
79
00:06:14,008 --> 00:06:16,711
That would be very rare.
80
00:06:16,744 --> 00:06:19,113
You know, some people
get away from sex work
81
00:06:19,146 --> 00:06:20,681
without ever having had
an STI.
82
00:06:20,715 --> 00:06:23,684
Me, I had chlamydia,
I got gonorrhea,
83
00:06:23,718 --> 00:06:27,955
and then I did a seven-day,
you know, round of antibiotics
84
00:06:27,989 --> 00:06:29,357
and they were gone.
85
00:06:29,389 --> 00:06:32,727
And that's because
I got tested regularly.
86
00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:35,630
Also, I was wondering,
is this legal?
87
00:06:36,731 --> 00:06:38,633
Yes and no.
88
00:06:38,666 --> 00:06:41,168
But the cops have bigger
to fry.
89
00:06:41,202 --> 00:06:44,305
And we've never had a run-in
with law enforcement.
90
00:06:44,338 --> 00:06:45,840
You're fine.
91
00:06:45,873 --> 00:06:47,909
The fact that she's saying
she's been able to run
92
00:06:47,942 --> 00:06:51,646
a successful escorting agency
doesn't change the fact
93
00:06:51,679 --> 00:06:55,182
that criminalization
impacts us as workers
94
00:06:55,216 --> 00:06:56,884
in a way that it doesn't
impact her
95
00:06:56,918 --> 00:06:59,452
as someone who is not
sucking cock for money.
96
00:06:59,486 --> 00:07:02,990
How dangerous is this job?
97
00:07:03,024 --> 00:07:04,926
We've been in this business
a long time.
98
00:07:04,959 --> 00:07:07,929
You're totally safe,
nothing's gonna happen to you.
99
00:07:09,230 --> 00:07:12,633
She is not going to be
transparent about the risks
100
00:07:12,667 --> 00:07:15,136
that I face,
and the vulnerable situations
101
00:07:15,169 --> 00:07:17,004
she is about to put me in
102
00:07:17,038 --> 00:07:19,006
because she doesn't want
to scare me away.
103
00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:21,842
So, what do you want to be
called? You need a fake name.
104
00:07:21,876 --> 00:07:24,078
I'd thought about
this a lot.
105
00:07:24,111 --> 00:07:27,949
I was taking a romantic poetry
class at the time,
106
00:07:27,982 --> 00:07:32,119
and I had fallen
head over heels in love
107
00:07:32,153 --> 00:07:34,322
with William Blake.
108
00:07:34,355 --> 00:07:37,024
In Visions of the Daughters
of Albion,
109
00:07:37,058 --> 00:07:40,328
a virgin goddess named Oothoon
walks in woe
110
00:07:40,361 --> 00:07:44,131
when her eye is caught
by a marygold.
111
00:07:44,165 --> 00:07:46,233
"I see thee now a flower,
112
00:07:46,267 --> 00:07:48,035
"now a nymph.
113
00:07:48,069 --> 00:07:51,906
"I dare not pluck thee
from thy dewy bed."
114
00:07:51,939 --> 00:07:54,775
Pluck thou my flower,
Oothoon the mild.
115
00:07:54,809 --> 00:07:56,877
Another flower shall spring.
116
00:07:56,911 --> 00:07:59,580
Because the soul of
sweet delight
117
00:07:59,613 --> 00:08:01,782
can never pass away.
118
00:08:01,816 --> 00:08:05,786
That virginity
is forever.
119
00:08:05,820 --> 00:08:07,688
Marygold!
120
00:08:09,156 --> 00:08:10,558
Nah.
121
00:08:10,591 --> 00:08:12,526
How about Mary Ann?
122
00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:15,763
You kinda look like Mary Ann
from Gilligan's Island.
123
00:08:18,165 --> 00:08:19,934
Sure.
124
00:08:19,967 --> 00:08:21,502
Mary Ann.
125
00:08:21,535 --> 00:08:24,038
The Virgin Mary,
and her mother, Saint Anne.
126
00:08:24,071 --> 00:08:26,540
Two generations of maternal
divinity
127
00:08:26,574 --> 00:08:28,943
to protect me
on this whorish path.
128
00:08:28,976 --> 00:08:31,746
I remember signing an
agreement,
129
00:08:31,779 --> 00:08:34,682
but I'm not sure what it said.
130
00:08:39,787 --> 00:08:42,690
Trina and Craig couldn't get me
on the schedule fast enough.
131
00:08:42,723 --> 00:08:45,960
His name is Sanjay.
He's nice.
132
00:08:47,094 --> 00:08:50,831
He's more nervous than you are.
Trust me.
133
00:09:06,180 --> 00:09:08,182
Come in, come in.
134
00:09:08,215 --> 00:09:09,683
Hi.
135
00:09:14,855 --> 00:09:17,458
Jacket?
136
00:09:17,491 --> 00:09:19,794
Oh. Thanks. Um...
137
00:09:19,827 --> 00:09:22,029
- I'll be right back.
- Sure.
138
00:09:40,381 --> 00:09:42,216
- Hey.
- Hi.
139
00:09:46,521 --> 00:09:50,124
So, how long have you
been doing this?
140
00:09:50,157 --> 00:09:52,827
Not very long.
141
00:09:52,860 --> 00:09:57,298
Um, this is actually
my first appointment.
142
00:09:57,331 --> 00:09:59,100
You're my first client.
143
00:09:59,133 --> 00:10:00,367
Really?
144
00:10:01,836 --> 00:10:03,604
Wow...
145
00:10:05,272 --> 00:10:07,542
That's great. That's great.
146
00:10:24,024 --> 00:10:27,094
He was being kind,
he was being respectful,
147
00:10:27,128 --> 00:10:29,630
and we were pleasuring each
other.
148
00:10:29,663 --> 00:10:31,899
And I thought,
"If this is what it is...
149
00:10:33,400 --> 00:10:35,069
"...that's kinda fun!"
150
00:10:36,403 --> 00:10:40,207
Sanjay leaves me in the room
with half an hour left.
151
00:10:40,241 --> 00:10:41,742
Please lock up the room
whenever you are done.
152
00:10:41,775 --> 00:10:43,578
Goodnight, Mary Ann.
153
00:10:43,612 --> 00:10:45,446
Goodnight?
154
00:10:48,115 --> 00:10:49,950
Okay, I've just, like,
hit the jackpot here.
155
00:10:49,984 --> 00:10:52,820
I get to like,
relax in a room by myself
156
00:10:52,853 --> 00:10:55,022
after this momentous occasion
157
00:10:55,055 --> 00:10:58,292
where I feel like I had just
lost my whore virginity.
158
00:11:02,363 --> 00:11:04,165
Was it really me?
159
00:11:04,198 --> 00:11:07,301
A new friend, companion,
and partner in crime
160
00:11:07,334 --> 00:11:09,303
smiled back at me.
161
00:11:09,336 --> 00:11:12,139
And her name was Mary Ann.
162
00:11:19,780 --> 00:11:21,616
Toronto Sirens.
163
00:11:21,650 --> 00:11:24,852
Well, hi there,
Trina. It's Chuck from Texas.
164
00:11:24,885 --> 00:11:27,121
You have a gal for me
this evening?
165
00:11:27,154 --> 00:11:29,658
Have I got the girl
for you! She's new.
166
00:11:29,690 --> 00:11:33,694
Her name is Mary Ann,
and it's her first night.
167
00:11:33,727 --> 00:11:35,095
You're gonna love her.
168
00:11:36,730 --> 00:11:38,432
Yee-haw!
169
00:11:40,267 --> 00:11:42,369
Who is next?
170
00:11:46,575 --> 00:11:49,443
So, Mary Ann,
do you like Mozart?
171
00:11:49,476 --> 00:11:50,645
Yeah.
172
00:11:50,679 --> 00:11:52,313
Good, good.
173
00:11:52,346 --> 00:11:54,448
Do you like butt play?
174
00:11:54,481 --> 00:11:57,051
Um...
175
00:11:57,084 --> 00:11:58,620
I don't know.
176
00:11:58,653 --> 00:12:01,088
How about rimming?
177
00:12:01,121 --> 00:12:02,456
Uh...
178
00:12:02,489 --> 00:12:04,258
Uh... I...
179
00:12:04,291 --> 00:12:05,660
I don't know.
180
00:12:05,694 --> 00:12:08,229
Come on.
Lick my ass.
181
00:12:08,262 --> 00:12:09,930
Please?
182
00:12:13,801 --> 00:12:17,004
I should have charged him
extra for that.
183
00:12:17,037 --> 00:12:18,939
By the time I reached
my final client,
184
00:12:18,973 --> 00:12:23,344
I was feeling like
a triumphant sexual queen.
185
00:12:25,179 --> 00:12:28,482
Max and I were sucked into
a flurry of mutual interests.
186
00:12:28,516 --> 00:12:31,085
Poetry, religion, politics.
187
00:12:31,118 --> 00:12:32,920
When he asked the dreaded--
188
00:12:32,953 --> 00:12:34,221
What's your story?
189
00:12:34,255 --> 00:12:38,792
Oh, I'm just a travelling
painter,
190
00:12:38,826 --> 00:12:40,662
passing through.
191
00:12:40,695 --> 00:12:44,999
Wow. I thought maybe you were
in university.
192
00:12:45,032 --> 00:12:46,500
No...
193
00:12:46,534 --> 00:12:48,202
No.
194
00:12:48,235 --> 00:12:50,804
You have a really
intellectual vibe.
195
00:12:50,838 --> 00:12:53,340
I've read a lot of books.
196
00:12:54,676 --> 00:12:56,210
Come here.
197
00:13:01,482 --> 00:13:04,719
We had some time left,
so I read him some tarot cards.
198
00:13:04,753 --> 00:13:06,787
Max was smart and courteous.
199
00:13:06,820 --> 00:13:09,524
Had I just met my ideal client?
200
00:13:11,526 --> 00:13:13,894
I made $700,
201
00:13:13,927 --> 00:13:15,896
and that was life-changing
for me.
202
00:13:15,929 --> 00:13:18,265
To go from minimum wage,
203
00:13:18,299 --> 00:13:19,300
where I worked at a cafe
204
00:13:19,333 --> 00:13:22,169
and I might get $700 on
two paycheques,
205
00:13:22,202 --> 00:13:25,105
Here I'd made it in one night
and had a ball.
206
00:13:26,807 --> 00:13:28,510
My new job was exciting,
207
00:13:28,543 --> 00:13:32,880
but the prospect of telling
my friends and family was not.
208
00:13:32,913 --> 00:13:35,550
So I kept my whoring a secret.
209
00:13:42,122 --> 00:13:45,560
Max had been my ideal client
when I met him.
210
00:13:45,593 --> 00:13:47,394
The next time I saw Max,
211
00:13:47,428 --> 00:13:50,197
I was selling tickets
to a psychology conference
212
00:13:50,230 --> 00:13:53,802
when he showed up in line,
and I almost had a heart attack.
213
00:13:53,834 --> 00:13:55,903
I was so freaked.
214
00:13:55,936 --> 00:13:59,106
I revealed that I was not,
in fact,
215
00:13:59,139 --> 00:14:02,711
a travelling painter
passing through.
216
00:14:02,744 --> 00:14:06,447
And was, of course,
a university student.
217
00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:09,083
And that more than that,
218
00:14:09,116 --> 00:14:13,087
what I really wanted to be
was a writer.
219
00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:16,023
You could come over, you know,
just to write.
220
00:14:16,056 --> 00:14:19,426
You mean, you'd pay me?
221
00:14:19,460 --> 00:14:21,995
Yeah. Why not?
222
00:14:22,029 --> 00:14:24,833
Let's do a two-hour
writing session.
223
00:14:27,736 --> 00:14:29,903
Okay.
224
00:14:29,937 --> 00:14:33,474
I thought, "Could my life get
any better?"
225
00:14:35,008 --> 00:14:37,645
So I show up to this paid
writing session,
226
00:14:37,679 --> 00:14:41,816
and as soon as I get there and
we're sitting in his apartment,
227
00:14:41,850 --> 00:14:43,785
he starts asking me questions.
228
00:14:43,818 --> 00:14:45,854
What was your childhood like?
229
00:14:45,919 --> 00:14:50,057
What happened to you to lead you
down this path?
230
00:14:50,090 --> 00:14:52,292
Are your parents still together?
231
00:14:52,326 --> 00:14:54,328
Were you abused?
232
00:14:56,330 --> 00:14:59,166
Mary Ann, I deal with people in
your field every day.
233
00:14:59,199 --> 00:15:01,468
They either come from
a broken home,
234
00:15:01,503 --> 00:15:04,405
or they have a long history
of sexual trauma.
235
00:15:04,438 --> 00:15:06,940
You claim you have neither,
which...
236
00:15:06,974 --> 00:15:09,143
I find hard to believe.
237
00:15:09,176 --> 00:15:11,111
You just don't fit the mould
of someone
238
00:15:11,145 --> 00:15:14,214
who does this
kind of work.
239
00:15:17,619 --> 00:15:19,821
Shall we go to the bedroom?
240
00:15:19,854 --> 00:15:22,657
I thought I was here to write.
241
00:15:22,690 --> 00:15:27,194
Come on.
242
00:15:27,227 --> 00:15:30,397
He was trying to enter me.
243
00:15:30,431 --> 00:15:33,033
You know, he was trying
to open doors
244
00:15:33,066 --> 00:15:36,069
for which he had no key.
245
00:15:36,103 --> 00:15:38,573
He was trying to barge into me
246
00:15:38,606 --> 00:15:41,543
and I did not like it at all.
247
00:15:59,794 --> 00:16:01,729
Max.
248
00:16:01,763 --> 00:16:04,131
I'm not comfortable.
249
00:16:04,164 --> 00:16:06,266
That was great.
250
00:16:07,735 --> 00:16:10,738
Do you want to go home now?
251
00:16:10,772 --> 00:16:12,439
Yeah.
252
00:16:12,473 --> 00:16:16,109
I just felt like
such a naive baby whore,
253
00:16:16,143 --> 00:16:17,745
to have believed a client
254
00:16:17,779 --> 00:16:21,081
when he said that he wanted
a paid writing session.
255
00:16:21,114 --> 00:16:23,150
I would not go into it
256
00:16:23,183 --> 00:16:26,253
without being prepared
to have sex.
257
00:16:26,286 --> 00:16:29,156
You don't get any training
for this stuff.
258
00:16:29,189 --> 00:16:32,694
I mean, you kinda
have to walk through the fire
259
00:16:32,727 --> 00:16:35,429
to learn these lessons.
260
00:16:35,462 --> 00:16:39,199
Bottom line,
you can't trust clients.
261
00:16:43,771 --> 00:16:46,975
Personally, I don't think there
is anything more important
262
00:16:47,007 --> 00:16:48,843
than community.
263
00:16:48,877 --> 00:16:50,578
You know, especially
for an industry
264
00:16:50,612 --> 00:16:52,747
that's as isolated as ours.
265
00:16:52,780 --> 00:16:57,417
When sex workers get together
and we talk shop, magic happens.
266
00:16:57,451 --> 00:17:00,454
Even if we are experiencing
our work in isolation,
267
00:17:00,487 --> 00:17:02,991
we can hear each other and
totally understand each other.
268
00:17:03,023 --> 00:17:05,425
My name is SJ Raphael.
269
00:17:05,459 --> 00:17:09,697
I have done everything from
escorting to stripping,
270
00:17:09,731 --> 00:17:11,265
cam work, street work.
271
00:17:11,298 --> 00:17:13,935
I was mailing my underwear
to weird men overseas
272
00:17:13,968 --> 00:17:16,771
for a really long time, until it
didn't become lucrative anymore.
273
00:17:16,804 --> 00:17:18,573
You name it, I've done it.
274
00:17:18,606 --> 00:17:21,676
SJ, they are one of
my most cherished friends.
275
00:17:21,709 --> 00:17:23,978
We met through advocacy work.
276
00:17:24,012 --> 00:17:27,247
I'm Vixen, I am a former escort.
277
00:17:27,281 --> 00:17:29,884
I've now transitioned into being
278
00:17:29,918 --> 00:17:32,319
a nude online cam girl.
279
00:17:32,352 --> 00:17:36,624
Vixen is a good friend of mine,
and we met at an orgy.
280
00:17:36,658 --> 00:17:40,995
My name is Kitoko, and I am a
former escort and pro sub,
281
00:17:41,029 --> 00:17:42,931
or professional submissive.
282
00:17:42,964 --> 00:17:44,699
Oh, and a current artist.
283
00:17:44,732 --> 00:17:49,069
Kitoko is an incredibly gifted
artist and collaborator.
284
00:17:49,102 --> 00:17:51,371
We made a short film together.
285
00:17:51,405 --> 00:17:54,976
I'm Robin. I've been a stripper
for five years now,
286
00:17:55,009 --> 00:17:57,812
and I am also a formally trained
287
00:17:57,845 --> 00:18:00,180
animator and illustrator.
288
00:18:00,213 --> 00:18:03,551
Robin is an amazing performer.
289
00:18:03,585 --> 00:18:06,420
We worked at the same
strip club.
290
00:18:07,989 --> 00:18:11,191
Being white, cisgendered,
and conventionally feminine
291
00:18:11,224 --> 00:18:14,028
has definitely benefited me
in this industry.
292
00:18:14,062 --> 00:18:17,932
How have these factors
impacted my friends?
293
00:18:17,966 --> 00:18:19,934
Certainly there is that
archetype
294
00:18:19,968 --> 00:18:21,168
of what a "whore"
should look like,
295
00:18:21,201 --> 00:18:22,503
what a sex worker should
look like.
296
00:18:22,537 --> 00:18:24,572
The lingerie, the hair,
the makeup, the clothes,
297
00:18:24,606 --> 00:18:26,975
the this, the that.
As a gender diverse person,
298
00:18:27,008 --> 00:18:29,077
I present far more femme
than I feel
299
00:18:29,109 --> 00:18:30,945
because I make more money
doing it.
300
00:18:30,979 --> 00:18:32,412
It's easier for me
to get clients,
301
00:18:32,446 --> 00:18:34,015
it's easier for me to have
the long blonde hair,
302
00:18:34,048 --> 00:18:35,516
like, put on the dress, like,
do the thing,
303
00:18:35,550 --> 00:18:37,451
and then make, you know,
the money that I am charging.
304
00:18:37,484 --> 00:18:40,521
The way that I look,
the way that I carry myself,
305
00:18:40,555 --> 00:18:44,692
isn't quite a reflection of
who I am internally.
306
00:18:44,726 --> 00:18:49,496
But money talks, and I very much
curate to the male gaze.
307
00:18:49,530 --> 00:18:51,699
I applied to a a bunch of
different agencies
308
00:18:51,733 --> 00:18:55,235
multiple times, like, up to,
like 20 times for some of them.
309
00:18:55,268 --> 00:18:57,705
They told me not to expect to be
as successful as any of
310
00:18:57,739 --> 00:19:00,340
the, like, white women there or
the Asian women there.
311
00:19:00,374 --> 00:19:02,910
They see Black women as like,
kind of like, alien.
312
00:19:02,944 --> 00:19:05,513
Like, they're just like,
"Who would ever desire you?"
313
00:19:05,546 --> 00:19:08,850
Or like, "We don't know to get
people to, like, come book you."
314
00:19:08,883 --> 00:19:12,352
As someone who is mixed race and
spent a lot of their time
315
00:19:12,386 --> 00:19:15,188
being told that I am barely
Black to begin with,
316
00:19:15,222 --> 00:19:18,425
to walk into a strip club and
face this, sort of,
317
00:19:18,458 --> 00:19:21,829
1970s style racism
where I am told verbatim
318
00:19:21,863 --> 00:19:25,667
that I am too fat and too Black
to work in an establishment
319
00:19:25,700 --> 00:19:27,334
blew me away.
320
00:19:27,367 --> 00:19:29,804
Walking into a change room and
seeing that sign on the wall
321
00:19:29,837 --> 00:19:32,305
that just said "No braids,
no buns, no Afros."
322
00:19:32,339 --> 00:19:34,709
And the only thing more
offensive than that sign
323
00:19:34,742 --> 00:19:37,612
is the fact that it wasn't
actually a rule for everyone,
324
00:19:37,645 --> 00:19:39,312
- it was a rule for Black women.
- Yeah,
325
00:19:39,346 --> 00:19:42,550
I have never had trouble making
money in a club
326
00:19:42,583 --> 00:19:44,317
no matter what my hair
looks like.
327
00:19:44,351 --> 00:19:46,788
Customers love the hair,
they love the beads,
328
00:19:46,821 --> 00:19:49,057
they love the dreads,
they love the locs.
329
00:19:49,090 --> 00:19:50,792
It's managers.
330
00:19:50,825 --> 00:19:54,361
We'll get into
strip club managers later.
331
00:19:54,394 --> 00:19:56,664
And now, back to escorting.
332
00:19:58,432 --> 00:20:01,268
And so,
Mary Ann kept on whoring.
333
00:20:01,301 --> 00:20:05,506
Lucky lads across
the Greater Toronto Area
334
00:20:05,540 --> 00:20:09,877
met the cutest little gal
they'd ever seen.
335
00:20:09,911 --> 00:20:11,344
And boy...
336
00:20:11,378 --> 00:20:13,948
...Could that cowgirl ride!
337
00:20:17,250 --> 00:20:20,454
Soon, I had regulars
338
00:20:20,487 --> 00:20:22,590
who booked me regularly.
339
00:20:22,623 --> 00:20:24,525
Mmm. Mary Ann.
That's very good.
340
00:20:24,559 --> 00:20:26,460
Mr. McAllister
was an English teacher
341
00:20:26,493 --> 00:20:28,395
and a writer in his spare time.
342
00:20:28,428 --> 00:20:31,431
I really like it when
you do that.
343
00:20:33,300 --> 00:20:37,004
We always had quick sex
off the top.
344
00:20:37,038 --> 00:20:39,841
All the character development
leads to the inevitable...
345
00:20:39,874 --> 00:20:41,809
Followed by talking about
our shared love
346
00:20:41,843 --> 00:20:45,179
of crafting stories.
Occasionally, he blurted--
347
00:20:45,213 --> 00:20:47,882
I'm a lonely man, Mary Ann.
348
00:20:47,915 --> 00:20:50,184
A lonely...
349
00:20:50,218 --> 00:20:52,352
...lonely man.
350
00:20:54,622 --> 00:20:57,692
Which, over time, became...
351
00:20:57,725 --> 00:21:02,362
I feel like you're my
girlfriend, Mary Ann.
352
00:21:03,430 --> 00:21:06,134
I am like your girlfriend.
353
00:21:12,039 --> 00:21:14,509
I prefer new clients
to regulars.
354
00:21:14,542 --> 00:21:16,309
People kind of like,
fall in love
355
00:21:16,343 --> 00:21:18,146
or think they're falling in love
and then suddenly,
356
00:21:18,179 --> 00:21:20,148
they are like,
"What about this money?
357
00:21:20,181 --> 00:21:21,749
"Can we, like, throw it away?"
358
00:21:21,783 --> 00:21:23,450
And it's like, that's not
the point of this.
359
00:21:23,483 --> 00:21:27,255
Yes, a regular is great until
they get possessive.
360
00:21:27,287 --> 00:21:30,792
But they always do! I'm sorry,
it always ends like that, right.
361
00:21:30,825 --> 00:21:32,059
Yeah.
362
00:21:32,093 --> 00:21:33,261
Don't be so good
at your job, then!
363
00:21:33,293 --> 00:21:34,595
Well...
364
00:21:34,629 --> 00:21:37,765
I definitely broke the number
one rule.
365
00:21:37,799 --> 00:21:42,170
I ended up dating
my very first client.
366
00:21:42,203 --> 00:21:45,740
And, uh, we're not--
we're not together,
367
00:21:45,773 --> 00:21:48,176
so, probably made the wrong
choice there.
368
00:21:48,209 --> 00:21:50,144
It's such an intimate thing.
369
00:21:50,178 --> 00:21:52,180
It's such an intimate booking.
370
00:21:52,213 --> 00:21:55,883
It would be crazy to think that
people don't get attached.
371
00:21:55,917 --> 00:21:59,486
That people feel a deep
emotional connection.
372
00:21:59,520 --> 00:22:01,756
Personally, I like regulars.
373
00:22:01,789 --> 00:22:04,725
My preference is to have
long-term relationships
374
00:22:04,759 --> 00:22:07,261
with my clientele.
375
00:22:07,295 --> 00:22:09,163
For me, it comes down
to whether
376
00:22:09,197 --> 00:22:11,032
a client respects
your boundaries.
377
00:22:11,065 --> 00:22:14,669
We've established that clients
can lie to our faces.
378
00:22:14,702 --> 00:22:17,905
But how do they behave beyond
the appointment?
379
00:22:25,813 --> 00:22:29,050
Sex worker review boards are
the domain of hobbyists,
380
00:22:29,083 --> 00:22:32,352
that is, men whose hobby
is paying for sex
381
00:22:32,385 --> 00:22:33,888
and writing about it,
382
00:22:33,921 --> 00:22:36,657
employing a variety
of colourful acronyms
383
00:22:36,691 --> 00:22:39,426
to degrade sex workers for fun.
384
00:22:40,460 --> 00:22:43,531
So, of course I searched
my name.
385
00:22:45,566 --> 00:22:48,269
Mary Ann
has a great sex body,
386
00:22:48,302 --> 00:22:51,973
very soft, but firm,
if that makes sense.
387
00:22:52,006 --> 00:22:54,508
Mary Ann resembled
Mary Tyler Moore,
388
00:22:54,542 --> 00:22:57,011
but with slightly bigger boobs.
389
00:22:57,044 --> 00:23:00,014
Mary Ann's legs
were not memorable
390
00:23:00,047 --> 00:23:02,783
as they are fairly short.
391
00:23:02,817 --> 00:23:06,153
It's hard to describe
the feeling of reading someone
392
00:23:06,187 --> 00:23:08,421
write about you
393
00:23:08,455 --> 00:23:11,525
and what it's like
to have sex with you.
394
00:23:11,559 --> 00:23:14,328
This was, like,
a genre of erotica
395
00:23:14,362 --> 00:23:16,664
that was written by men
for men.
396
00:23:16,697 --> 00:23:20,735
A user named Don Juan posted
my first review on the board,
397
00:23:20,768 --> 00:23:24,238
which was entitled "Wow."
398
00:23:24,272 --> 00:23:27,708
I had noticed
Mary Ann ever since her photos
399
00:23:27,742 --> 00:23:32,647
went up on the Sirens site.
My first impression was "Wow."
400
00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:35,482
I would estimate her figure
at five foot five,
401
00:23:35,516 --> 00:23:39,654
120 pounds, 34D-24-35.
402
00:23:40,621 --> 00:23:43,591
We started with LFK.
403
00:23:43,624 --> 00:23:47,228
I was gently massaging her
breasts when she said...
404
00:23:49,063 --> 00:23:51,464
You intrigue me.
405
00:23:51,498 --> 00:23:53,968
Why, baby?
406
00:23:54,001 --> 00:23:58,139
Most guys want to take a look
before they feel.
407
00:23:58,172 --> 00:24:01,842
I remember things
a little differently.
408
00:24:01,876 --> 00:24:05,313
Don Juan told me he was a
plastic surgeon from Florida.
409
00:24:05,346 --> 00:24:08,215
I went to school
with Barack Obama, baby.
410
00:24:08,249 --> 00:24:09,984
What do you think of that?
411
00:24:10,017 --> 00:24:13,888
My duty was to act impressed,
not to sniff out facts.
412
00:24:13,921 --> 00:24:16,958
I suspected the plastic surgeon
thing to be true
413
00:24:16,991 --> 00:24:20,094
because Don Juan had
a technical fascination
414
00:24:20,127 --> 00:24:21,395
with my breasts.
415
00:24:21,429 --> 00:24:22,797
I don't believe it, baby.
416
00:24:22,830 --> 00:24:26,701
These are too good to be real.
417
00:24:27,768 --> 00:24:30,470
Then we progressed to DFK.
418
00:24:30,504 --> 00:24:32,472
My tongue in her mouth...
419
00:24:32,506 --> 00:24:33,908
Her tongue in mine...
420
00:24:33,941 --> 00:24:36,510
Our tongues meeting
outside of our mouths.
421
00:24:40,281 --> 00:24:44,251
Hungrily. Passionately.
422
00:24:45,619 --> 00:24:50,591
It did get her wet.
423
00:24:50,624 --> 00:24:53,260
Then she took me
into her mouth.
424
00:24:53,294 --> 00:24:54,996
I propped myself up...
425
00:24:55,029 --> 00:24:57,465
On some
pillows to get a better look.
426
00:24:57,497 --> 00:25:00,901
She told me that she wanted
to taste me.
427
00:25:00,935 --> 00:25:03,938
Okay, I definitely did not
say that, okay?
428
00:25:03,971 --> 00:25:06,073
I didn't say any of this!
429
00:25:06,107 --> 00:25:07,742
Cut, cut, cut, cut.
430
00:25:07,775 --> 00:25:09,143
All right, darling, you're doing
great, you're doing fabulous.
431
00:25:09,176 --> 00:25:12,546
However, that's not the line.
The line is...
432
00:25:12,580 --> 00:25:14,515
"I want to taste you,
433
00:25:14,548 --> 00:25:17,051
"I want to taste you."
434
00:25:17,084 --> 00:25:20,287
You know, pretend you're eating
a, uh, portobello mushroom,
435
00:25:20,321 --> 00:25:22,556
you know, and it's in your
mouth, and you can taste it,
436
00:25:22,590 --> 00:25:24,158
and it's swirling around
in there.
437
00:25:24,191 --> 00:25:26,394
And then you just enjoy it all.
All right, you got it?
438
00:25:26,427 --> 00:25:28,496
Good. Great. Action!
439
00:25:32,433 --> 00:25:36,003
I want to taste you.
440
00:25:37,071 --> 00:25:38,639
Yes!
441
00:25:38,672 --> 00:25:40,641
We finished
with a mind-blowing...
442
00:25:40,674 --> 00:25:42,343
CIM?
443
00:25:42,376 --> 00:25:45,012
No. COF? Hmm.
444
00:25:45,046 --> 00:25:46,614
I'm not sure which.
445
00:25:46,647 --> 00:25:48,349
And I really didn't care.
446
00:25:48,382 --> 00:25:51,052
Whatever
it was that Mary Ann did,
447
00:25:51,085 --> 00:25:52,620
oh, baby.
448
00:25:52,653 --> 00:25:56,557
Oh-ho-ho. It was fabulous.
449
00:26:03,030 --> 00:26:06,467
Everything that he says
that the did and that he said
450
00:26:06,500 --> 00:26:08,369
just didn't happen.
451
00:26:08,402 --> 00:26:10,171
What do you guys think
about reviews?
452
00:26:10,204 --> 00:26:12,740
I don't get to review them.
453
00:26:12,773 --> 00:26:16,110
I needed one review
and that launched me.
454
00:26:16,143 --> 00:26:17,546
Mm-hmm.
455
00:26:17,578 --> 00:26:19,613
It can really make or break
your career.
456
00:26:19,647 --> 00:26:21,449
The dark side of reviews is that
they are definitely
457
00:26:21,482 --> 00:26:24,652
a form of coercion. Clients will
take the threat of a bad review
458
00:26:24,685 --> 00:26:26,487
and use it to push your
boundaries.
459
00:26:26,521 --> 00:26:28,155
There's, like, so much pressure,
460
00:26:28,189 --> 00:26:30,157
and you feel like you have to
consent to everything, and...
461
00:26:30,191 --> 00:26:34,462
It feels like being a product
in an Amazon review.
462
00:26:34,495 --> 00:26:36,363
- It's definitely violating.
- Yeah.
463
00:26:36,397 --> 00:26:38,766
Reviews taught me
that sex work is more
464
00:26:38,799 --> 00:26:41,702
than just what happens behind
closed doors.
465
00:26:46,373 --> 00:26:51,546
There was something fun about
performing this role for people.
466
00:26:53,681 --> 00:26:55,683
And then going back into
my regular life.
467
00:26:55,716 --> 00:26:59,653
Mary Ann was me,
but obviously heightened
468
00:26:59,687 --> 00:27:02,623
and more curious and more
adventurous.
469
00:27:02,656 --> 00:27:04,959
It was sexy, it was sexy
470
00:27:04,992 --> 00:27:08,229
to have this little juicy
secret.
471
00:27:21,709 --> 00:27:23,410
My secret life was fun until...
472
00:27:23,444 --> 00:27:26,380
Hey, baby!
473
00:27:26,413 --> 00:27:29,817
Yeah, baby!
You lookin' good to me.
474
00:27:29,850 --> 00:27:32,753
Oh, yeah!
475
00:27:33,754 --> 00:27:36,157
Stupid ugly bitch.
476
00:27:36,190 --> 00:27:39,594
Until shame crept in.
477
00:27:42,062 --> 00:27:44,231
There's two sides to a secret.
478
00:27:44,265 --> 00:27:48,335
It can be incredibly
emotionally taxing
479
00:27:48,369 --> 00:27:50,971
to hide from people,
480
00:27:51,005 --> 00:27:52,706
especially the people
you love.
481
00:27:52,740 --> 00:27:56,877
We all have this internalized
whorephobia within us.
482
00:27:56,911 --> 00:27:59,980
This is a prejudice that is,
you know, 2,000 years old.
483
00:28:00,014 --> 00:28:03,284
This is nothing new.
We are all born out of
484
00:28:03,317 --> 00:28:06,787
this whorephobic muck.
And I have it too.
485
00:28:06,820 --> 00:28:09,957
The shame that I felt
wasn't in the act.
486
00:28:09,990 --> 00:28:13,160
It was the shame of others,
and it was inside me,
487
00:28:13,194 --> 00:28:16,297
and I could hear its voice,
and it was awful.
488
00:28:16,330 --> 00:28:17,731
You think you're so great, huh?
489
00:28:17,765 --> 00:28:20,167
Making all that easy money.
490
00:28:20,201 --> 00:28:22,736
Shame believes that sex workers
are lazy.
491
00:28:27,708 --> 00:28:29,611
And disgusting.
492
00:28:29,644 --> 00:28:34,381
What is the difference between
a Corvette and a dead hooker?
493
00:28:34,415 --> 00:28:36,150
Shame likes dead hooker jokes.
494
00:28:36,183 --> 00:28:38,419
I don't have a Corvette
in my garage!
495
00:28:38,452 --> 00:28:40,254
You're nothing
496
00:28:40,287 --> 00:28:42,957
but a dirty, stinky...
497
00:28:42,990 --> 00:28:45,459
Shame tries to make me
hate myself.
498
00:28:45,492 --> 00:28:49,029
Trash whore!
499
00:28:50,731 --> 00:28:53,167
Shame makes you lonely.
Like, it really does.
500
00:28:53,200 --> 00:28:55,369
And it's also, like, shame goes
hand in hand with fear, too.
501
00:28:55,402 --> 00:28:57,104
That's the thing.
It's like, I don't disclose,
502
00:28:57,137 --> 00:28:59,073
or I didn't use to disclose
because I don't know
503
00:28:59,106 --> 00:29:00,874
what's gonna happen to me
if I do.
504
00:29:00,908 --> 00:29:03,744
During the pandemic, I had to
stop full-service sex work
505
00:29:03,777 --> 00:29:05,913
and so I was thinking about
creating an OnlyFans,
506
00:29:05,946 --> 00:29:08,816
but I was like,
super stressed out because
507
00:29:08,849 --> 00:29:10,652
if I have nudes on the internet,
508
00:29:10,685 --> 00:29:12,853
could that make it impossible
for me to, like,
509
00:29:12,886 --> 00:29:17,191
adopt a child, or just pivot
and like, teach?
510
00:29:17,224 --> 00:29:19,293
I feel like it's not so much
that sex work itself
511
00:29:19,326 --> 00:29:21,829
oppresses me, but like,
the stigma that follows it,
512
00:29:21,862 --> 00:29:24,231
um, is like, always a threat.
513
00:29:24,265 --> 00:29:28,969
I have never been very good
at hiding.
514
00:29:29,003 --> 00:29:30,804
But I understand that there are
risks,
515
00:29:30,838 --> 00:29:33,675
and so I continued to hide,
516
00:29:33,708 --> 00:29:36,377
and it took a great toll on me.
517
00:29:36,410 --> 00:29:40,347
Especially when it came to...
518
00:29:40,381 --> 00:29:42,049
My mom.
519
00:29:44,285 --> 00:29:47,421
You probably never expected
we'd be here.
520
00:29:47,454 --> 00:29:49,023
Um, well,
521
00:29:49,056 --> 00:29:52,527
I wouldn't say it's beyond
my imagination.
522
00:29:52,560 --> 00:29:54,729
You were always a free spirit.
523
00:29:54,763 --> 00:29:57,865
And I respect that.
524
00:29:58,667 --> 00:30:00,467
I learned from the best.
525
00:30:03,505 --> 00:30:04,972
No, you're more free,
526
00:30:05,005 --> 00:30:07,742
more free than
I ever was,
527
00:30:07,776 --> 00:30:09,778
but I'm free in a
different way.
528
00:30:09,810 --> 00:30:13,013
Ooh. In what way?
529
00:30:13,047 --> 00:30:15,482
No. This is about you.
530
00:30:15,517 --> 00:30:16,817
It's not about me.
531
00:30:16,850 --> 00:30:19,019
- We were always very close.
- Mm-hmm.
532
00:30:19,053 --> 00:30:21,556
- At least I always felt.
- Oh, definitely.
533
00:30:21,589 --> 00:30:23,190
Yeah. Like, I felt
534
00:30:23,223 --> 00:30:26,594
like I could always
be myself around you.
535
00:30:26,628 --> 00:30:28,530
We could always
joke around about stuff.
536
00:30:28,563 --> 00:30:29,930
Right. I don't think
537
00:30:29,963 --> 00:30:31,633
there was ever anything
we didn't talk about.
538
00:30:31,666 --> 00:30:32,866
That's right,
and so,
539
00:30:32,900 --> 00:30:36,805
when it came
to doing sex work,
540
00:30:36,837 --> 00:30:38,439
that was the first
time in my life
541
00:30:38,472 --> 00:30:42,242
that I really felt like I was
keeping a secret from you,
542
00:30:42,276 --> 00:30:46,480
and that was really,
really hard for me to do.
543
00:30:47,582 --> 00:30:49,784
My mom is a
beautiful angel,
544
00:30:49,818 --> 00:30:52,886
and she's also a very
religious person.
545
00:30:52,920 --> 00:30:54,723
She's a Catholic.
546
00:30:54,756 --> 00:30:57,057
There were always pictures
547
00:30:57,091 --> 00:31:01,830
of the Virgin Mary
around in my childhood.
548
00:31:01,862 --> 00:31:04,932
I like to joke that she
venerates a virgin mother
549
00:31:04,965 --> 00:31:07,535
so she got a
whore daughter.
550
00:31:07,569 --> 00:31:09,236
No parent is like,
551
00:31:09,269 --> 00:31:12,139
"I want my kid to
become a sex worker!"
552
00:31:12,172 --> 00:31:15,577
It's, like, kind of a nightmare
scenario for a parent, right?
553
00:31:18,212 --> 00:31:21,616
I would say you were
pretty devastated.
554
00:31:21,649 --> 00:31:23,884
Mm-hmm. Well, I
was happy for you
555
00:31:23,917 --> 00:31:27,589
that you were not carrying
that burden anymore.
556
00:31:27,622 --> 00:31:30,457
You know, you had
been set free.
557
00:31:30,491 --> 00:31:32,025
So, I can deal
with that.
558
00:31:32,059 --> 00:31:33,595
I can deal with truth.
559
00:31:33,628 --> 00:31:35,129
That's not a
problem,
560
00:31:35,162 --> 00:31:38,899
but I do remember not sleeping
for about three nights.
561
00:31:38,932 --> 00:31:40,134
You did call me
in the middle
562
00:31:40,167 --> 00:31:41,503
- of the night--
- Mm-hmm.
563
00:31:41,536 --> 00:31:42,936
--you know, during those
first three nights,
564
00:31:42,970 --> 00:31:45,005
and you were concerned
about my safety.
565
00:31:45,038 --> 00:31:47,675
Right,
and your soul.
566
00:31:49,443 --> 00:31:50,645
And my soul.
567
00:31:58,318 --> 00:32:01,488
En route to our respective
appointments with a co-whore,
568
00:32:01,523 --> 00:32:04,659
I mentioned my most regular
client, Walter Wack.
569
00:32:04,692 --> 00:32:05,894
He's the worst.
570
00:32:05,926 --> 00:32:07,695
Oh, my God. I know.
571
00:32:07,729 --> 00:32:09,430
He's so rough
with me.
572
00:32:09,463 --> 00:32:12,266
Yeah. He does this thing where
he, like, crunches me up,
573
00:32:12,299 --> 00:32:13,902
and it really hurts
my hips.
574
00:32:13,934 --> 00:32:16,470
Yeah, well, he
fists me,
575
00:32:16,504 --> 00:32:18,071
and he's rough.
576
00:32:18,105 --> 00:32:20,040
Okay. He's definitely
never fisted me.
577
00:32:20,073 --> 00:32:22,577
And he calls me a dirty,
stinky cum bucket trash whore.
578
00:32:22,610 --> 00:32:25,045
You name it.
Weird guy.
579
00:32:25,078 --> 00:32:27,549
Okay. He's only ever
called me nice things.
580
00:32:27,582 --> 00:32:29,651
Well, I guess he
likes you.
581
00:32:29,684 --> 00:32:31,251
Violet.
582
00:32:31,285 --> 00:32:33,253
I was one of
many escorts who saw Walter.
583
00:32:33,287 --> 00:32:34,254
Sarah.
584
00:32:34,288 --> 00:32:35,255
Addison.
585
00:32:35,289 --> 00:32:36,457
Rebecca.
586
00:32:36,490 --> 00:32:37,991
Uh, Andrea.
587
00:32:38,025 --> 00:32:40,528
I mean Mary Ann!
588
00:32:40,562 --> 00:32:44,699
Going to Walter Wack's place
was, like, Groundhog Day,
589
00:32:44,732 --> 00:32:46,601
because it was
always the same.
590
00:32:46,634 --> 00:32:48,903
His door would be ajar.
591
00:32:48,937 --> 00:32:51,338
He'd yell from the
shower, "Come on in!"
592
00:32:51,371 --> 00:32:53,474
There'd be a boom box
on the floor
593
00:32:53,508 --> 00:32:54,709
playing the same music.
594
00:32:54,742 --> 00:32:57,846
I always entered on
the same song.
595
00:32:57,879 --> 00:33:02,349
I would undress and
wait for him to emerge.
596
00:33:02,382 --> 00:33:04,017
We'd have the same
sex every time.
597
00:33:05,319 --> 00:33:08,088
One evening, he
did something unusual.
598
00:33:08,121 --> 00:33:10,491
He booked me twice
in one night,
599
00:33:10,525 --> 00:33:14,428
bookending five
appointments total,
600
00:33:14,461 --> 00:33:16,798
and by that fifth
appointment,
601
00:33:16,831 --> 00:33:19,968
I was pretty sore.
602
00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:22,604
Walter was doing his
usual plow,
603
00:33:22,637 --> 00:33:24,672
crunching up my hips.
604
00:33:24,706 --> 00:33:27,007
I was in pain,
605
00:33:27,040 --> 00:33:28,510
trying to be
a trooper,
606
00:33:28,543 --> 00:33:30,077
get to the end,
607
00:33:30,110 --> 00:33:33,982
but finally, I felt
like it was necessary
608
00:33:34,014 --> 00:33:36,083
to say something
to him.
609
00:33:36,116 --> 00:33:38,185
And I was kind of scared to
say something to him,
610
00:33:38,218 --> 00:33:42,690
because... it meant going
off script.
611
00:33:44,626 --> 00:33:46,694
But I said,
612
00:33:46,728 --> 00:33:49,797
"Walter, you're my
fifth appointment of the night,
613
00:33:49,831 --> 00:33:51,566
and it kind of hurts."
614
00:33:54,636 --> 00:33:56,771
And he said...
615
00:33:59,106 --> 00:34:00,909
"That just makes me want
to fuck you harder."
616
00:34:03,745 --> 00:34:04,913
And so he did.
617
00:34:07,347 --> 00:34:09,751
Ten minutes of torture left.
618
00:34:09,784 --> 00:34:13,487
He called me every horrible
name he'd called Sarah,
619
00:34:13,521 --> 00:34:16,024
but I was afraid
to leave.
620
00:34:16,056 --> 00:34:19,059
You never have
to see him again.
621
00:34:19,092 --> 00:34:21,128
Walter
was blacklisted...
622
00:34:21,161 --> 00:34:24,264
for me, not for the
other girls.
623
00:34:24,298 --> 00:34:26,400
If someone has had a
client blacklisted,
624
00:34:26,433 --> 00:34:28,002
then there should
be transparency
625
00:34:28,036 --> 00:34:29,604
so that everyone at
the agency can choose
626
00:34:29,637 --> 00:34:31,873
whether they want to
see that person or not.
627
00:34:31,906 --> 00:34:33,508
These guys, they're
repeat offenders.
628
00:34:33,541 --> 00:34:36,310
They eventually do the same
thing to every single one of us,
629
00:34:36,343 --> 00:34:38,178
and it's not fair that we
don't get to decide
630
00:34:38,211 --> 00:34:39,681
if that happens
to us or not.
631
00:34:39,714 --> 00:34:41,783
We're not trying to even
punish the predator.
632
00:34:41,816 --> 00:34:43,350
We just want to
not see them.
633
00:34:43,383 --> 00:34:45,385
We don't want to have to
be prey. Yeah. Like--
634
00:34:45,419 --> 00:34:47,321
But if, you know, sex
work were decriminalized,
635
00:34:47,354 --> 00:34:50,424
we'd actually maybe be able
to build a relationship
636
00:34:50,457 --> 00:34:52,694
with law enforcement if
that's what we wanted to do.
637
00:34:52,727 --> 00:34:54,428
Or at the very least, labour,
you know, sort of rights--
638
00:34:54,461 --> 00:34:56,531
- Labour.
- You know, which involves
639
00:34:56,564 --> 00:34:58,900
workplace safety, and this
is a workplace safety issue.
640
00:35:00,668 --> 00:35:03,504
Exchanges like
this one were rare.
641
00:35:03,538 --> 00:35:06,774
I worked at the same
agency as Andrea,
642
00:35:06,808 --> 00:35:08,408
and we never met.
643
00:35:08,442 --> 00:35:11,478
And a part of me
thinks it's by design.
644
00:35:11,512 --> 00:35:15,683
We were two
opinionated girls.
645
00:35:15,717 --> 00:35:19,020
The conversation would
have never stayed surface level.
646
00:35:19,053 --> 00:35:22,523
Having us have
too much knowledge
647
00:35:22,557 --> 00:35:27,160
is never a good thing in terms
of an agency perspective.
648
00:35:27,194 --> 00:35:28,896
Like, knowledge
is power,
649
00:35:28,930 --> 00:35:31,099
and they don't want us
to have that kind of power.
650
00:35:33,968 --> 00:35:35,335
Being an escort,
651
00:35:35,369 --> 00:35:39,373
you don't only see
people physically naked.
652
00:35:39,406 --> 00:35:41,408
It's emotionally naked.
653
00:35:41,441 --> 00:35:45,445
To find out how
much hate and negativity
654
00:35:45,479 --> 00:35:49,182
people carry
within themselves,
655
00:35:49,216 --> 00:35:50,585
it affects your soul.
656
00:35:52,285 --> 00:35:55,455
We're supposed to
keep your secrets,
657
00:35:55,489 --> 00:35:57,025
and that includes
the secret
658
00:35:57,058 --> 00:36:00,394
of how you
truly behave, you know.
659
00:36:00,427 --> 00:36:02,563
And that's why we experience so
much violence from people,
660
00:36:02,597 --> 00:36:04,398
because there's this
assumption
661
00:36:04,431 --> 00:36:07,101
that we're not going
to tell anyone.
662
00:36:07,135 --> 00:36:09,037
We don't have
anyone to turn to.
663
00:36:09,070 --> 00:36:10,571
There's no one to
protect us.
664
00:36:15,076 --> 00:36:17,477
My mom was concerned
about my safety,
665
00:36:17,512 --> 00:36:19,947
and she was right to
be concerned.
666
00:36:21,549 --> 00:36:24,284
On the day that I
graduated university,
667
00:36:24,317 --> 00:36:26,521
- we went out to lunch.
- Mm-hmm.
668
00:36:26,554 --> 00:36:28,388
We sat down
at the table,
669
00:36:28,422 --> 00:36:31,559
and the first thing that
you said was,
670
00:36:31,592 --> 00:36:33,460
"When you going to quit
that job of yours?"
671
00:36:33,493 --> 00:36:34,529
Right.
672
00:36:34,562 --> 00:36:37,598
And I'm like...
..."Okay.
673
00:36:39,399 --> 00:36:40,802
By my
next birthday,"
674
00:36:40,835 --> 00:36:42,537
which was a
year from then,
675
00:36:42,570 --> 00:36:43,771
and you said...
676
00:36:45,338 --> 00:36:46,908
"I'd like to have that
in writing."
677
00:36:46,941 --> 00:36:48,609
Yeah.
678
00:36:48,643 --> 00:36:52,279
And so I signed
a contract with my mother.
679
00:36:52,312 --> 00:36:53,781
"I, Andrea Werhun,
680
00:36:53,815 --> 00:36:56,584
"vow to stop hooking on
my 24th birthday.
681
00:36:56,617 --> 00:36:58,553
You have it in
writing."
682
00:36:58,586 --> 00:37:01,288
I had one year
of whoring left.
683
00:37:08,261 --> 00:37:09,429
With these
appointments,
684
00:37:09,463 --> 00:37:10,698
these hour-long
appointments
685
00:37:10,732 --> 00:37:12,033
with people you've
never met before,
686
00:37:12,066 --> 00:37:14,635
it's like
I'm a comet
687
00:37:14,669 --> 00:37:19,073
entering the stratosphere of
somebody else's world,
688
00:37:19,107 --> 00:37:21,142
and then I get to
see them naked.
689
00:37:21,175 --> 00:37:22,409
And then I get to
have sex with them,
690
00:37:22,442 --> 00:37:23,611
and I get to make them come.
691
00:37:23,644 --> 00:37:25,278
And I, like,
hit the Earth,
692
00:37:25,312 --> 00:37:27,181
and I'm gone. And that's it.
693
00:37:27,215 --> 00:37:28,750
You get to the
core of a person,
694
00:37:28,783 --> 00:37:30,585
and then
you're gone.
695
00:37:30,618 --> 00:37:33,320
There's just, like,
something really fascinating
696
00:37:33,353 --> 00:37:36,190
about how close
you can get to a person
697
00:37:36,224 --> 00:37:37,692
in such a
short period of time
698
00:37:37,725 --> 00:37:39,761
and the level of intimacy
that you can feel
699
00:37:39,794 --> 00:37:42,462
with someone you've
never met before
700
00:37:42,496 --> 00:37:43,998
and then just be gone.
701
00:37:47,902 --> 00:37:50,437
You know, you have sex
with a few hundred clients,
702
00:37:50,470 --> 00:37:52,573
and you start to
notice a few patterns.
703
00:37:52,607 --> 00:37:57,277
So I think I could teach
a class on sex work.
704
00:37:59,080 --> 00:38:00,380
No matter what you
call them--
705
00:38:00,413 --> 00:38:02,583
clients, johns, tricks--
706
00:38:02,617 --> 00:38:04,852
the men who pay for
sex have a bevy of reasons
707
00:38:04,886 --> 00:38:07,822
for procuring the services
of a professional.
708
00:38:07,855 --> 00:38:10,625
Take your travelling
businessman, for instance,
709
00:38:10,658 --> 00:38:12,827
tired and in need of a relaxing,
710
00:38:12,860 --> 00:38:14,327
no-strings-attached fu--
711
00:38:15,630 --> 00:38:17,330
However, many of our clients
712
00:38:17,364 --> 00:38:19,066
are very much attached.
713
00:38:20,300 --> 00:38:22,036
Shocking, I know.
714
00:38:22,069 --> 00:38:23,403
Here's a line I often heard.
715
00:38:23,436 --> 00:38:25,206
I'm just paying you for
a service.
716
00:38:25,239 --> 00:38:26,541
It's not like we're having
717
00:38:26,574 --> 00:38:28,441
a passionate affair
or anything.
718
00:38:28,475 --> 00:38:30,077
Then why not tell your wife?
719
00:38:31,444 --> 00:38:34,048
Having a wife is too good a deal
720
00:38:34,081 --> 00:38:35,550
to screw up with
a truth bomb like,
721
00:38:35,583 --> 00:38:38,019
"When I tell you I'm staying
late at the office,
722
00:38:38,052 --> 00:38:40,054
"I'm really doing lines of coke
723
00:38:40,087 --> 00:38:42,857
with an escort in a motel room
off the highway."
724
00:38:44,091 --> 00:38:45,660
Perhaps I seem like some kind
725
00:38:45,693 --> 00:38:48,395
of husband-humping femme fatale,
726
00:38:48,428 --> 00:38:50,898
the heartless, scheming villain
727
00:38:50,932 --> 00:38:52,233
of the story,
728
00:38:52,266 --> 00:38:54,001
but my madam
would always say...
729
00:38:54,035 --> 00:38:56,336
I think we save marriages.
730
00:38:56,369 --> 00:38:58,072
It's safer for men
to see an escort
731
00:38:58,105 --> 00:39:01,609
than have an affair with
the secretary at the office.
732
00:39:01,642 --> 00:39:03,010
It's a lot less mess.
733
00:39:05,613 --> 00:39:06,981
But--
734
00:39:07,014 --> 00:39:08,316
Enough about them.
735
00:39:08,348 --> 00:39:09,817
How about our clients
with disabilities?
736
00:39:09,851 --> 00:39:13,087
My client Paul was
a favourite of mine.
737
00:39:13,120 --> 00:39:15,189
His legs may have
been paralyzed,
738
00:39:15,223 --> 00:39:16,724
but my word,
739
00:39:16,757 --> 00:39:20,360
that tongue was limber.
740
00:39:20,393 --> 00:39:21,762
And of course,
741
00:39:21,796 --> 00:39:22,964
the lazy bachelor,
742
00:39:22,997 --> 00:39:24,966
sometimes too lazy.
743
00:39:26,499 --> 00:39:28,603
Do you watch hockey?
744
00:39:28,636 --> 00:39:30,037
Sort of.
745
00:39:30,071 --> 00:39:31,839
I see you're
a big fan.
746
00:39:31,873 --> 00:39:34,508
Oh, yeah, ever
since I was a kid.
747
00:39:34,542 --> 00:39:36,611
How old are you?
748
00:39:36,644 --> 00:39:38,212
- Why don't you guess?
- Twenty-seven?
749
00:39:41,749 --> 00:39:42,950
I'm older.
750
00:39:44,652 --> 00:39:46,354
A whiff of his dick
751
00:39:46,386 --> 00:39:48,956
conveyed notes of
cheese and black mold.
752
00:39:50,191 --> 00:39:52,159
Why didn't I ask Gus to
hit the showers?
753
00:39:52,193 --> 00:39:55,763
Why did I let his curdled
cheese string into my mouth?
754
00:39:55,796 --> 00:39:57,497
We've got Mary
Ann in the head zone.
755
00:39:57,531 --> 00:39:59,834
She appears to
be struggling, Bob.
756
00:39:59,867 --> 00:40:01,102
She sure is, Tim.
757
00:40:01,135 --> 00:40:02,737
And the blow job
758
00:40:02,770 --> 00:40:04,639
comes to an end.
759
00:40:04,672 --> 00:40:06,574
- Is that it?
- Mary Ann is now going
760
00:40:06,607 --> 00:40:08,209
into the cowgirl
position.
761
00:40:08,242 --> 00:40:09,810
Oh! And it looks like
Gus has got
762
00:40:09,844 --> 00:40:11,679
some stubble going
on down there.
763
00:40:11,712 --> 00:40:14,949
It must be scraping the shit
out of her you-know-what, Bob.
764
00:40:14,982 --> 00:40:18,586
Mary Ann is determined to ride
this john through the pain.
765
00:40:18,619 --> 00:40:20,821
- Wow.
- She is working for the money
766
00:40:20,855 --> 00:40:23,224
- tonight, boys.
- Mary Ann is dismounting.
767
00:40:23,257 --> 00:40:24,625
- Your turn.
- And it looks
768
00:40:24,659 --> 00:40:28,029
like Gus is remaining in
the reclined position.
769
00:40:28,062 --> 00:40:29,363
He's going soft.
770
00:40:31,232 --> 00:40:33,500
Mary Ann's got
her hand on the stick.
771
00:40:35,569 --> 00:40:36,904
He shoots!
772
00:40:36,938 --> 00:40:40,274
She scores! Mary Ann
has done it again,
773
00:40:40,308 --> 00:40:41,943
proving why she's one of
the most valuable escorts.
774
00:40:43,377 --> 00:40:45,780
Yes! Yes!
775
00:40:45,813 --> 00:40:50,318
And finally, there are the
heartbroken newly single men
776
00:40:50,351 --> 00:40:52,720
in need of a
bosom to cry on.
777
00:40:53,721 --> 00:40:55,122
I don't want to play games.
778
00:40:57,124 --> 00:41:00,561
I just want sex.
779
00:41:00,594 --> 00:41:01,963
I heard
that Jeremy had seen
780
00:41:01,996 --> 00:41:03,364
every escort at
the agency but me.
781
00:41:03,397 --> 00:41:05,700
Excuse me. What?
782
00:41:05,733 --> 00:41:07,368
He was a
typical finance guy--
783
00:41:07,401 --> 00:41:08,903
You got to be kidding me!
784
00:41:08,936 --> 00:41:11,105
Drunk,
volatile, loves hookers.
785
00:41:11,138 --> 00:41:12,306
Is he always
like that?
786
00:41:12,340 --> 00:41:14,308
Oh, for
fuck's sake!
787
00:41:14,342 --> 00:41:15,743
For as long
as I've known him.
788
00:41:17,678 --> 00:41:20,881
Jeremy was legendary for
his multi-hour appointments.
789
00:41:20,915 --> 00:41:23,918
My co-whore Violet
held the record--
790
00:41:23,951 --> 00:41:25,920
36 hours.
791
00:41:25,953 --> 00:41:27,655
When she finally
had to go,
792
00:41:27,688 --> 00:41:30,591
she was promptly replaced
by another girl,
793
00:41:30,624 --> 00:41:33,894
and now, it was my turn
to get to know the legend.
794
00:41:33,928 --> 00:41:35,196
What's your sign?
795
00:41:35,229 --> 00:41:36,630
Scorpio.
796
00:41:38,299 --> 00:41:39,567
Me too!
797
00:41:39,600 --> 00:41:41,635
We had
a lot in common.
798
00:41:41,669 --> 00:41:43,471
Around the five-hour
mark, I asked...
799
00:41:43,504 --> 00:41:45,539
So, do you have
any children?
800
00:41:47,208 --> 00:41:49,343
My kid's birthday party.
801
00:41:49,377 --> 00:41:51,612
Drunk here.
802
00:41:51,645 --> 00:41:53,681
Really drunk in
this one.
803
00:41:57,151 --> 00:41:59,186
That stupid
fucking bitch!
804
00:42:01,188 --> 00:42:03,257
She's ruined
my life!
805
00:42:03,290 --> 00:42:06,227
- Everything's gone!
- Okay.
806
00:42:06,260 --> 00:42:07,495
- It's ruined!
- Okay.
807
00:42:07,528 --> 00:42:11,632
Jeremy, you are
a Scorpio, remember?
808
00:42:11,665 --> 00:42:14,268
And Scorpios
are ruled by Pluto.
809
00:42:14,301 --> 00:42:16,404
That's the planet of
transformation,
810
00:42:16,437 --> 00:42:18,606
of life and death
and rebirth.
811
00:42:18,639 --> 00:42:23,277
If anyone could
change their life,
812
00:42:23,310 --> 00:42:24,845
it's you.
813
00:42:24,879 --> 00:42:27,648
Though sex workers aren't
officially therapists,
814
00:42:27,681 --> 00:42:29,083
we try our best.
815
00:42:30,651 --> 00:42:32,053
Let's do some coke.
816
00:42:37,625 --> 00:42:40,561
There's a certain
suspension of reality
817
00:42:40,594 --> 00:42:42,997
in the time an escort
and her john share.
818
00:42:46,767 --> 00:42:49,504
The time allotted is
a sacred space
819
00:42:49,538 --> 00:42:51,072
in which both
parties feel free
820
00:42:51,105 --> 00:42:54,341
to be themselves without
judgment.
821
00:42:55,576 --> 00:42:56,545
What do you like?
822
00:42:56,577 --> 00:42:57,912
I like sex.
823
00:42:59,613 --> 00:43:00,781
I don't know
about that.
824
00:43:00,815 --> 00:43:02,517
Oh, no!
825
00:43:05,920 --> 00:43:09,056
Jeremy demanded I
cuddle him all night.
826
00:43:09,090 --> 00:43:10,424
Paid to sleep?
827
00:43:10,458 --> 00:43:12,460
A sex worker's dream.
828
00:43:16,730 --> 00:43:17,898
Mary Ann.
829
00:43:20,434 --> 00:43:21,602
Mary Ann.
830
00:43:22,837 --> 00:43:25,806
Mary Ann, that's
very good.
831
00:43:25,840 --> 00:43:27,341
When I told
Mr. McAllister
832
00:43:27,374 --> 00:43:29,009
I was leaving the biz,
833
00:43:29,043 --> 00:43:31,178
from the high horse of a
john in the arms of a whore,
834
00:43:31,212 --> 00:43:32,379
he said...
835
00:43:32,413 --> 00:43:33,848
You know, Mary Ann,
836
00:43:33,881 --> 00:43:36,083
it'll be
hard for you.
837
00:43:36,117 --> 00:43:37,685
Dating, that is,
838
00:43:37,718 --> 00:43:41,655
you know, having worked
in this industry.
839
00:43:43,023 --> 00:43:44,625
What makes
you say that?
840
00:43:46,127 --> 00:43:50,164
Well, a lot of people
don't respect pr...
841
00:43:52,733 --> 00:43:55,636
Men are too jealous.
842
00:43:57,104 --> 00:43:59,907
Men don't respect...
843
00:44:00,708 --> 00:44:01,876
Women like you.
844
00:44:07,281 --> 00:44:09,450
I never told
you this,
845
00:44:09,483 --> 00:44:10,918
but I have
a boyfriend.
846
00:44:16,157 --> 00:44:17,358
You do?
847
00:44:23,030 --> 00:44:26,033
We have been
together for...
848
00:44:26,066 --> 00:44:27,234
Thirteen years.
849
00:44:29,670 --> 00:44:31,640
How did we meet?
850
00:44:31,672 --> 00:44:33,440
Well, we met
in university,
851
00:44:33,474 --> 00:44:34,842
last year of university.
852
00:44:34,875 --> 00:44:36,677
You came to a
house party at my house.
853
00:44:36,710 --> 00:44:41,115
That was the first time
I met you, and yeah.
854
00:44:41,148 --> 00:44:43,951
Then I kind of chased
you a little bit
855
00:44:43,984 --> 00:44:46,053
for a few weeks.
856
00:44:46,086 --> 00:44:48,623
I knew, "Okay. This guy's
a philosophy major."
857
00:44:50,090 --> 00:44:51,725
"He's got to
be pretty bright.
858
00:44:51,759 --> 00:44:54,529
Maybe I'll just take
a chance and tell him."
859
00:44:54,563 --> 00:44:56,964
So I said, "I'm an escort,"
860
00:44:56,997 --> 00:44:59,568
and you were like, "Cool."
861
00:44:59,601 --> 00:45:02,671
Yeah.
862
00:45:02,703 --> 00:45:04,939
I thought that you were an
interesting person.
863
00:45:04,972 --> 00:45:06,240
I did think it
was cool.
864
00:45:06,273 --> 00:45:08,976
It was something
unique and different,
865
00:45:09,009 --> 00:45:12,614
so I wasn't going
to allow that
866
00:45:12,647 --> 00:45:15,482
to affect my
interest in you.
867
00:45:16,717 --> 00:45:18,085
So mature.
868
00:45:19,787 --> 00:45:22,289
Why didn't it
bother you?
869
00:45:22,323 --> 00:45:24,559
I see sex work
as a job.
870
00:45:24,593 --> 00:45:27,861
It's a job where you use your
body and you use your mind,
871
00:45:27,895 --> 00:45:29,263
like any other job.
872
00:45:29,296 --> 00:45:31,432
People use all sorts
of different body parts
873
00:45:31,465 --> 00:45:32,967
to do their labour,
874
00:45:33,000 --> 00:45:36,103
and we're not concerned
about it unless it's sexual.
875
00:45:36,136 --> 00:45:38,405
There's something about
sex that--
876
00:45:38,439 --> 00:45:40,808
I guess because it's
so closely tied to love--
877
00:45:40,841 --> 00:45:43,077
that people feel like
it has to be controlled,
878
00:45:43,110 --> 00:45:47,881
you have to possess your partner
or own them in some sense,
879
00:45:47,915 --> 00:45:49,950
and that it isn't real
love unless you do
880
00:45:49,984 --> 00:45:51,919
or real commitment
unless you do.
881
00:45:52,820 --> 00:45:54,822
Hello?
882
00:45:54,855 --> 00:45:56,323
Time's up.
883
00:45:56,357 --> 00:45:57,758
Okay. Thanks.
884
00:46:16,377 --> 00:46:20,649
♪ The light shines down
the valley ♪
885
00:46:20,682 --> 00:46:23,551
♪ The wind blows
up the alley ♪
886
00:46:23,585 --> 00:46:26,621
♪ Oh and I wish
I was lying ♪
887
00:46:26,655 --> 00:46:29,156
♪ In the arms
of Mary ♪
888
00:46:32,393 --> 00:46:36,598
♪ She took the
pains of boyhood ♪
889
00:46:36,631 --> 00:46:39,867
♪ And turned them
into feel good ♪
890
00:46:39,900 --> 00:46:42,704
♪ Oh and I wish
I was lying ♪
891
00:46:42,737 --> 00:46:45,039
♪ In the arms
of Mary ♪
892
00:46:45,072 --> 00:46:49,310
♪ Mary was the girl who taught
me all I had to know ♪
893
00:46:49,343 --> 00:46:53,013
♪ She put me right on
the first mistake ♪
894
00:46:53,047 --> 00:46:57,284
♪ Summer wasn't gone and I
learned all she had to show ♪
895
00:46:57,318 --> 00:47:01,355
♪ She really gave all
a boy could take ♪
896
00:47:02,724 --> 00:47:04,358
So long, Mary Ann.
897
00:47:22,209 --> 00:47:23,911
The perennial
Marygold,
898
00:47:23,944 --> 00:47:25,714
plucked from its
dewy bed,
899
00:47:25,747 --> 00:47:28,382
must die,
and so did I.
900
00:47:28,415 --> 00:47:32,587
Mary Ann the whore lived,
died, and was born again...
901
00:47:32,620 --> 00:47:34,154
on a farm.
902
00:47:38,192 --> 00:47:41,161
I had been working on a
farm for a couple seasons
903
00:47:41,195 --> 00:47:43,897
before you came
to live with me there.
904
00:47:43,931 --> 00:47:45,966
In a way, I
went to the farm
905
00:47:45,999 --> 00:47:49,704
to escape my shame,
906
00:47:49,738 --> 00:47:54,174
to prove to myself that I
was more than just a prostitute,
907
00:47:54,208 --> 00:47:56,745
but shame
was with me.
908
00:47:56,778 --> 00:48:00,247
Hey, saggy titties.
909
00:48:00,280 --> 00:48:02,751
After my second
season on the farm,
910
00:48:02,784 --> 00:48:04,952
I needed to stop.
911
00:48:04,985 --> 00:48:06,954
I think you enjoyed it,
912
00:48:06,987 --> 00:48:08,155
but it's not your life.
913
00:48:08,188 --> 00:48:09,557
It's not the life you want,
914
00:48:09,591 --> 00:48:10,759
and that's fine.
915
00:48:10,792 --> 00:48:13,327
- It wasn't exactly my calling.
- Yeah.
916
00:48:13,360 --> 00:48:15,229
On top of the physical
toll it was taking,
917
00:48:15,262 --> 00:48:17,498
I was not making
any money.
918
00:48:17,532 --> 00:48:18,767
I was broke.
919
00:48:18,800 --> 00:48:21,135
Broke? You're a joke.
920
00:48:21,168 --> 00:48:24,672
You're a washed-up whore
with no prospects.
921
00:48:24,706 --> 00:48:26,073
What are you gonna do,
922
00:48:26,106 --> 00:48:29,711
put "proficient at blowjobs"
on your résumé?
923
00:48:34,716 --> 00:48:38,218
So I decided
to become normal.
924
00:48:38,252 --> 00:48:40,354
I moved back to the city
925
00:48:40,387 --> 00:48:43,023
and landed an
entry-level nine to five.
926
00:48:43,056 --> 00:48:45,593
I worked during my
lunchbreaks, evening overtime,
927
00:48:45,627 --> 00:48:48,929
and still never kept up
or did things quite right.
928
00:48:50,364 --> 00:48:51,932
It was hell.
929
00:48:51,965 --> 00:48:56,036
Commuting in rush hour to
a job that I hate...
930
00:48:56,069 --> 00:48:58,038
I would rather
fuck a stranger.
931
00:49:00,174 --> 00:49:02,443
When you
tried a regular job,
932
00:49:02,476 --> 00:49:05,212
you'd come home,
and you'd be crying.
933
00:49:05,245 --> 00:49:08,081
Yeah. That's no life. No.
934
00:49:08,115 --> 00:49:11,786
So I quit and got a
gig as a bike courier.
935
00:49:11,820 --> 00:49:13,287
There was no
résumé required,
936
00:49:13,320 --> 00:49:15,857
but there
was snow and ice.
937
00:49:15,890 --> 00:49:17,291
I was falling off
my bike,
938
00:49:17,324 --> 00:49:19,259
getting my tire caught
in sewer grates,
939
00:49:19,293 --> 00:49:22,029
car doors being jut out
in front of me,
940
00:49:22,062 --> 00:49:23,565
and so I wondered,
941
00:49:23,598 --> 00:49:25,265
what was more dangerous,
942
00:49:25,299 --> 00:49:27,434
working as a bike courier--
943
00:49:27,468 --> 00:49:28,670
--or as a stripper?
944
00:49:30,237 --> 00:49:34,007
I think, like, work in
general is exploitative.
945
00:49:34,041 --> 00:49:36,009
It's hard to be empowered
under capitalism
946
00:49:36,043 --> 00:49:38,378
when we're all
basically purchasing
947
00:49:38,412 --> 00:49:39,948
our survival.
948
00:49:39,980 --> 00:49:41,482
So, I'm disabled
and neuro-divergent,
949
00:49:41,516 --> 00:49:43,618
and sex work was a
really good fit for me,
950
00:49:43,651 --> 00:49:46,855
because it allowed me
to build a practice
951
00:49:46,888 --> 00:49:49,156
that was specific
to my needs.
952
00:49:49,189 --> 00:49:51,358
Sex work, for me,
gave me a way
953
00:49:51,391 --> 00:49:53,126
to, like, do more
than survive.
954
00:49:53,160 --> 00:49:54,796
It gave me
a way to live.
955
00:49:54,829 --> 00:49:56,463
Do you feel like sex
work is something
956
00:49:56,497 --> 00:49:59,767
that compliments your
artistic practice?
957
00:49:59,801 --> 00:50:01,201
Yeah, definitely.
I don't think
958
00:50:01,235 --> 00:50:04,606
that I could be an
artist without sex work.
959
00:50:04,639 --> 00:50:06,373
Like, I'm not a
nepo baby.
960
00:50:06,406 --> 00:50:07,675
I wish I was.
961
00:50:07,709 --> 00:50:10,778
My artistic skills make
a lot of sense in sex work.
962
00:50:10,812 --> 00:50:12,947
Like, it is
a performance.
963
00:50:12,981 --> 00:50:14,516
It's gendered performance.
964
00:50:16,518 --> 00:50:20,087
I had deliberately
worded my agreement with my mom
965
00:50:20,120 --> 00:50:23,892
to refer strictly
to hooking.
966
00:50:23,925 --> 00:50:25,325
I left stripping
out of it.
967
00:50:27,494 --> 00:50:29,162
Alright. So, you work
seven-hour shifts,
968
00:50:29,196 --> 00:50:30,565
minimum three days a week,
969
00:50:30,598 --> 00:50:32,366
three shows per night.
970
00:50:32,399 --> 00:50:34,301
Lap dances
are $20 per song.
971
00:50:34,334 --> 00:50:38,138
Champagne room, $400
per hour per girl.
972
00:50:38,171 --> 00:50:42,142
Now, whatever happens
in the champagne room...
973
00:50:43,778 --> 00:50:45,613
Stays in the
champagne room.
974
00:50:45,647 --> 00:50:47,381
There's a security guard
at the entrance there
975
00:50:47,414 --> 00:50:49,517
to keep an eye on the time so
there's no discrepancy
976
00:50:49,551 --> 00:50:52,754
with the, uh, song counts,
because sometimes--
977
00:50:52,787 --> 00:50:54,488
--rarely here--
978
00:50:54,522 --> 00:50:55,990
--customers,
979
00:50:56,024 --> 00:50:58,826
uh, they try and
rip off the dancers.
980
00:51:00,327 --> 00:51:02,129
So--
981
00:51:02,162 --> 00:51:04,364
--you want
to start tonight?
982
00:51:04,398 --> 00:51:06,634
I texted with Maurice
about my stripper name.
983
00:51:10,838 --> 00:51:12,574
Sophia means wisdom.
984
00:51:12,607 --> 00:51:14,008
The Holy Spirit.
985
00:51:14,042 --> 00:51:15,577
The divine feminine.
986
00:51:21,114 --> 00:51:23,952
I'm not the best
pole dancer in the world,
987
00:51:23,985 --> 00:51:27,187
so I had to learn how
to work my angles.
988
00:51:27,220 --> 00:51:30,290
For me, there is nothing
more powerful than nudity,
989
00:51:30,324 --> 00:51:34,762
eye contact, and a smile paired
with a few signature moves.
990
00:51:34,796 --> 00:51:36,698
Fireman!
991
00:51:36,731 --> 00:51:40,467
The Twirl 'n' Squat.
992
00:51:40,500 --> 00:51:41,703
The Floater!
993
00:51:42,904 --> 00:51:44,137
And Hollywood.
994
00:51:45,773 --> 00:51:46,975
Oh, and ATC.
995
00:51:47,008 --> 00:51:48,275
That's ass to crowd!
996
00:51:48,308 --> 00:51:49,744
Oh, yeah.
997
00:51:49,777 --> 00:51:52,245
But I wasn't always the
professional you see here.
998
00:51:56,618 --> 00:51:58,519
On my second shift,
999
00:51:58,553 --> 00:52:00,521
I meet a guy
named Bob Abrams.
1000
00:52:00,555 --> 00:52:03,323
He called me over to him,
and he said, you know,
1001
00:52:03,357 --> 00:52:04,491
"Sit down and have
a drink with me.
1002
00:52:04,525 --> 00:52:06,094
I'll make it
worth your while."
1003
00:52:06,126 --> 00:52:09,229
So, what brings
you here tonight?
1004
00:52:09,262 --> 00:52:13,433
You are so fucking hot.
1005
00:52:13,467 --> 00:52:15,202
Do you know what it's like
having two kids at home?
1006
00:52:15,235 --> 00:52:16,504
Of course you
don't.
1007
00:52:16,537 --> 00:52:19,473
Yeah. Oh, my.
1008
00:52:19,507 --> 00:52:21,542
I love you. You're
fucking awesome.
1009
00:52:23,243 --> 00:52:25,345
His wife at home
with their newborn,
1010
00:52:25,379 --> 00:52:27,115
Bob Abrams
smelled of a man
1011
00:52:27,147 --> 00:52:29,784
who had everything
handed to him.
1012
00:52:35,023 --> 00:52:36,591
We got wasted.
1013
00:52:36,624 --> 00:52:39,961
Up in the VIP, I gave Bob
a passionate lap dance.
1014
00:52:56,044 --> 00:52:57,444
Bob took his
dick out.
1015
00:52:58,746 --> 00:53:00,280
You are so hot.
1016
00:53:01,314 --> 00:53:03,450
Fuck. Let's fuck.
1017
00:53:04,786 --> 00:53:06,486
No. No.
1018
00:53:08,790 --> 00:53:11,125
We finally called it a
night at 15 songs.
1019
00:53:12,392 --> 00:53:14,896
He wanted
to see me again.
1020
00:53:14,929 --> 00:53:17,965
Bob emailed me to arrange
our next meeting.
1021
00:53:17,999 --> 00:53:19,801
More on that later.
1022
00:53:21,268 --> 00:53:23,236
Soon, I had regulars
at the strip club,
1023
00:53:23,270 --> 00:53:25,707
and Ron was the
cream of the crop.
1024
00:53:28,442 --> 00:53:30,310
Hello, mysterious man.
1025
00:53:31,278 --> 00:53:32,647
Hello, Andrea.
1026
00:53:34,247 --> 00:53:36,818
Ron is one
of my regulars.
1027
00:53:36,851 --> 00:53:39,020
He was known at the club
by the other dancers
1028
00:53:39,053 --> 00:53:41,189
as being
Sophia's guy.
1029
00:53:41,221 --> 00:53:42,957
We'd sit on a couch,
1030
00:53:42,990 --> 00:53:44,759
watch the game,
1031
00:53:44,792 --> 00:53:45,960
eat a burrito.
1032
00:53:45,993 --> 00:53:47,862
All the while,
1033
00:53:47,895 --> 00:53:49,063
baby, I'm being paid.
1034
00:53:49,097 --> 00:53:50,297
It was so good.
1035
00:53:50,330 --> 00:53:51,699
We'd get to the VIP.
1036
00:53:51,733 --> 00:53:52,900
I'd take my shoes off.
1037
00:53:52,934 --> 00:53:54,267
He'd give me a foot rub.
1038
00:53:54,301 --> 00:53:55,636
You were wearing
those ridiculous heels.
1039
00:53:55,670 --> 00:53:57,304
- What do you call them?
- Pleasers.
1040
00:53:57,337 --> 00:53:58,873
Pleasers. Right. And
so you were complaining
1041
00:53:58,906 --> 00:54:01,408
about your feet being sore from
wearing those all day,
1042
00:54:01,441 --> 00:54:03,376
so I just naturally started
giving you a foot rub.
1043
00:54:03,410 --> 00:54:05,713
And that became, like,
a regular thing,
1044
00:54:05,747 --> 00:54:07,982
and I took it
really seriously,
1045
00:54:08,015 --> 00:54:09,650
because one time, I
said, you know,
1046
00:54:09,684 --> 00:54:11,185
"Is this your first
foot rub today?"
1047
00:54:11,219 --> 00:54:13,320
And you said, "Well, no."
1048
00:54:13,353 --> 00:54:14,822
So the next day,
I went to YouTube
1049
00:54:14,856 --> 00:54:16,758
and started searching how
to give foot massages.
1050
00:54:16,791 --> 00:54:18,325
I was like,
"I'm going to give you
1051
00:54:18,358 --> 00:54:19,527
a really good
foot massage if I can."
1052
00:54:19,560 --> 00:54:22,964
So... I started
bringing in the creams,
1053
00:54:22,997 --> 00:54:26,500
you know, getting really,
you know, professional about it.
1054
00:54:26,534 --> 00:54:28,603
You are one of the
good ones. That is for sure.
1055
00:54:28,636 --> 00:54:30,638
What do you think
is the secret
1056
00:54:30,671 --> 00:54:35,510
to the long-term relationship
that we have here?
1057
00:54:35,543 --> 00:54:36,978
You're a good
listener as well as having
1058
00:54:37,011 --> 00:54:38,513
a lot of stories
to tell,
1059
00:54:38,546 --> 00:54:40,681
and I mean, in
seven years,
1060
00:54:40,715 --> 00:54:42,784
I've gone through some
major life events.
1061
00:54:42,817 --> 00:54:44,619
And there's been things that
I've wanted to talk about
1062
00:54:44,652 --> 00:54:46,754
that I didn't feel
comfortable talking about
1063
00:54:46,788 --> 00:54:48,856
to, you know,
family or friends.
1064
00:54:48,890 --> 00:54:52,627
Ron is an
ideal customer in a few ways.
1065
00:54:52,660 --> 00:54:55,897
You know, he
understands the context.
1066
00:54:55,930 --> 00:54:59,901
He knows he's going to see
you for a set period of time
1067
00:54:59,934 --> 00:55:01,969
for X amount of money,
1068
00:55:02,003 --> 00:55:03,436
and on top of that,
1069
00:55:03,470 --> 00:55:05,573
he's kind. He's respectful.
1070
00:55:05,606 --> 00:55:08,441
Well, to me, kindness and
respect are my core values,
1071
00:55:08,475 --> 00:55:09,911
and I don't really
understand--
1072
00:55:09,944 --> 00:55:12,445
I mean, I've read your
stories and heard stories
1073
00:55:12,479 --> 00:55:14,414
about clients
who are not that way.
1074
00:55:14,447 --> 00:55:17,051
If only all customers
could be like Ron.
1075
00:55:19,419 --> 00:55:20,855
I actually really don't
even know this guy,
1076
00:55:20,888 --> 00:55:22,723
- if I'm being honest.
- Oh, really?
1077
00:55:22,757 --> 00:55:24,792
One night, I was chatting up
Stavros, an artist...
1078
00:55:24,826 --> 00:55:27,695
So, yeah. We actually met at
an ultimate Frisbee tournament.
1079
00:55:27,728 --> 00:55:30,798
Okay. A couple of
nerds. I like that.
1080
00:55:30,832 --> 00:55:33,234
...and his friend
Mark, a doctor.
1081
00:55:33,267 --> 00:55:34,902
Pretty much.
1082
00:55:34,936 --> 00:55:37,271
So, Sophia...
1083
00:55:37,305 --> 00:55:38,739
Who touched you?
1084
00:55:40,741 --> 00:55:42,743
Um, what?
1085
00:55:43,744 --> 00:55:45,046
Who touched you?
1086
00:55:45,079 --> 00:55:47,347
What happened in your
childhood to bring you here?
1087
00:55:49,684 --> 00:55:51,451
Apparently, Mark
would rather examine
1088
00:55:51,484 --> 00:55:53,588
my emotional wounds than
my dance moves.
1089
00:55:53,621 --> 00:55:57,225
Um, that's an incredibly
inappropriate question.
1090
00:55:57,258 --> 00:55:58,659
Dude.
1091
00:56:00,027 --> 00:56:01,829
Asking
sex workers
1092
00:56:01,863 --> 00:56:06,033
to divulge previous
traumatic experiences,
1093
00:56:06,067 --> 00:56:07,602
that's called trauma porn.
1094
00:56:08,769 --> 00:56:10,838
The questions run
the gamut.
1095
00:56:10,872 --> 00:56:12,773
They may seem
kind of innocent,
1096
00:56:12,807 --> 00:56:14,008
you know, like...
1097
00:56:15,643 --> 00:56:17,144
What
was your childhood like?
1098
00:56:18,913 --> 00:56:22,415
"What happened along
the way to make you this way?"
1099
00:56:23,918 --> 00:56:26,354
"What broke you?"
1100
00:56:26,386 --> 00:56:29,156
You think something's
wrong with me
1101
00:56:29,190 --> 00:56:32,793
that I'm doing this
for money,
1102
00:56:32,827 --> 00:56:34,494
that I am broken.
1103
00:56:36,964 --> 00:56:39,233
It doesn't make any sense why
anyone would feel entitled
1104
00:56:39,267 --> 00:56:40,902
to ask us about our
childhoods--
1105
00:56:40,935 --> 00:56:43,004
- No. None of your business.
- Especially in a situation--
1106
00:56:43,037 --> 00:56:46,207
--especially in a situation
where we're being hired
1107
00:56:46,240 --> 00:56:47,608
- to be sexy.
- Mm.
1108
00:56:47,642 --> 00:56:50,378
You know,
it suggests that, like,
1109
00:56:50,410 --> 00:56:52,346
our trauma is part of
the sex appeal.
1110
00:56:52,380 --> 00:56:54,815
Yeah. Would you ask
that of your server?
1111
00:56:54,849 --> 00:56:56,684
You know, would you ask
that of, like, your dentist?
1112
00:56:56,717 --> 00:56:58,586
Like, I wouldn't
do that.
1113
00:56:58,619 --> 00:56:59,921
I don't have
to be a victim,
1114
00:56:59,954 --> 00:57:01,956
but now, I feel like
you are victimizing me,
1115
00:57:01,989 --> 00:57:03,557
because you are trying to
take things from me
1116
00:57:03,591 --> 00:57:05,226
that I didn't offer
to you. You're trying
1117
00:57:05,259 --> 00:57:06,961
to take things from me. You're
trying to take, you know,
1118
00:57:06,994 --> 00:57:08,763
my emotional labour.
You're trying to elicit--
1119
00:57:08,796 --> 00:57:10,564
What, do you want me to cry?
Do you want me to sit here
1120
00:57:10,598 --> 00:57:12,900
and cry and tell you about--
Like, that's predatory.
1121
00:57:14,434 --> 00:57:16,137
One night, I
was riding high
1122
00:57:16,170 --> 00:57:19,907
on a '70s set guaranteed
to give any boomer a boner.
1123
00:57:36,223 --> 00:57:38,125
Fancy a dance
in the VIP?
1124
00:57:38,159 --> 00:57:39,860
Soon as I finish
this beer.
1125
00:57:39,894 --> 00:57:42,296
So, what brings
you here tonight?
1126
00:57:42,330 --> 00:57:43,898
Well, you know,
cat's away.
1127
00:57:43,931 --> 00:57:46,033
Our banter was
solid, until...
1128
00:57:46,067 --> 00:57:48,803
So, um...
1129
00:57:48,836 --> 00:57:51,238
What's the worst thing that's
ever happened to you here?
1130
00:57:52,506 --> 00:57:54,375
How do
I actually respond
1131
00:57:54,408 --> 00:57:56,444
to people who are asking
me for trauma porn?
1132
00:57:56,476 --> 00:57:59,513
Sometimes, I
deflect.
1133
00:58:00,715 --> 00:58:03,751
And sometimes, I
answer the question.
1134
00:58:03,784 --> 00:58:06,486
You know, I'll look a person in
the eye and say, "Rape."
1135
00:58:06,520 --> 00:58:08,456
Rape? Yeah.
1136
00:58:08,488 --> 00:58:09,890
That doesn't happen here.
1137
00:58:13,728 --> 00:58:15,129
I told him
my story.
1138
00:58:17,298 --> 00:58:18,699
Remember Bob?
1139
00:58:19,567 --> 00:58:21,569
Bob shows up at
the club.
1140
00:58:21,602 --> 00:58:25,072
It's, like, a
Monday night at 6:00 PM.
1141
00:58:25,106 --> 00:58:27,408
We go up to the VIP, and
it's early enough
1142
00:58:27,441 --> 00:58:29,977
that there isn't even
security up there.
1143
00:58:30,011 --> 00:58:31,746
We're alone.
1144
00:58:31,779 --> 00:58:33,214
Can I
take it out?
1145
00:58:35,883 --> 00:58:39,186
I do my job, which is
to get naked by the third song.
1146
00:58:41,722 --> 00:58:43,691
Let's fuck.
1147
00:58:43,724 --> 00:58:47,361
- No.
- Oh, come on. Why not?
1148
00:58:47,395 --> 00:58:49,063
I don't want to.
1149
00:58:49,096 --> 00:58:50,531
It'd be fun.
1150
00:58:50,564 --> 00:58:53,234
I don't have
any condoms.
1151
00:58:58,305 --> 00:58:59,840
But he doesn't listen.
1152
00:59:01,342 --> 00:59:03,044
He takes my hips,
1153
00:59:03,077 --> 00:59:05,479
forces me down,
1154
00:59:05,514 --> 00:59:07,648
and puts his
raw dick inside me.
1155
00:59:10,117 --> 00:59:11,652
Don't do that again.
1156
00:59:11,685 --> 00:59:16,624
Because I don't have a
good sense of my boundaries yet,
1157
00:59:16,657 --> 00:59:18,692
I do continue to
dance for him,
1158
00:59:18,726 --> 00:59:21,729
and it happens two
more times.
1159
00:59:28,803 --> 00:59:30,771
Then he stops
the dances.
1160
00:59:31,806 --> 00:59:34,308
And I'm putting my
clothes back on.
1161
00:59:34,341 --> 00:59:36,377
What's the
matter, babe?
1162
00:59:36,410 --> 00:59:37,645
You look so sad.
1163
00:59:37,678 --> 00:59:40,581
And I
say to him,
1164
00:59:40,614 --> 00:59:42,983
"I'm disappointed
in myself
1165
00:59:43,017 --> 00:59:46,253
for letting you
transgress my boundaries."
1166
00:59:47,621 --> 00:59:50,391
And obviously, there's
such a big element there
1167
00:59:50,424 --> 00:59:52,059
of victim blaming,
1168
00:59:52,093 --> 00:59:53,528
as if it's my fault,
1169
00:59:53,562 --> 00:59:54,728
and he replies...
1170
00:59:54,762 --> 00:59:57,331
Why? Do you have something?
1171
01:00:01,402 --> 01:00:04,539
Oh, yeah. That's
disturbing,
1172
01:00:04,573 --> 01:00:06,575
and I'm really sorry that
happened to you.
1173
01:00:06,607 --> 01:00:10,545
- Thanks.
- Yet, you came back.
1174
01:00:10,579 --> 01:00:13,848
I mean, it was
an isolated incident.
1175
01:00:14,782 --> 01:00:16,183
Most guys are fine.
1176
01:00:18,419 --> 01:00:22,089
So, you want
to go to the VIP?
1177
01:00:22,123 --> 01:00:25,359
Yeah. No. Not
after that story.
1178
01:00:25,392 --> 01:00:27,128
I am thoroughly turned
off now.
1179
01:00:28,429 --> 01:00:29,697
So why'd you ask?
1180
01:00:29,730 --> 01:00:32,333
Christ. I didn't
think you'd been raped.
1181
01:00:32,366 --> 01:00:34,101
You don't
look like the type.
1182
01:00:34,902 --> 01:00:36,670
The type?
1183
01:00:36,704 --> 01:00:39,073
What type of person
looks like they've been raped?
1184
01:00:39,106 --> 01:00:41,475
And what type of person
asks that question?
1185
01:00:41,510 --> 01:00:42,810
Dude.
1186
01:00:42,843 --> 01:00:46,380
Come on. Something must
have happened.
1187
01:00:46,413 --> 01:00:49,383
Women don't
just become strippers.
1188
01:00:49,416 --> 01:00:52,219
Man, I thought
we were having fun.
1189
01:00:52,253 --> 01:00:55,723
You really want me to relive my
trauma for your entertainment?
1190
01:00:59,360 --> 01:01:00,529
You know what?
1191
01:01:00,562 --> 01:01:02,129
Let's go to the VIP.
1192
01:01:02,163 --> 01:01:03,330
Now?
1193
01:01:03,364 --> 01:01:05,166
Yeah. Why not?
1194
01:01:13,440 --> 01:01:16,710
Look. I don't want
a dance.
1195
01:01:16,744 --> 01:01:18,245
I want to apologize.
1196
01:01:20,681 --> 01:01:24,619
The only reason I asked you
that question before
1197
01:01:24,653 --> 01:01:27,788
is because I was sexually
abused as a child
1198
01:01:27,821 --> 01:01:31,292
and I was wondering
if you were, too.
1199
01:01:34,328 --> 01:01:37,398
I'm sorry.
I just thought
1200
01:01:37,431 --> 01:01:40,334
maybe you
were as well
1201
01:01:40,367 --> 01:01:43,470
and I-- I
don't know.
1202
01:01:43,505 --> 01:01:46,307
Mark is a doctor.
1203
01:01:46,340 --> 01:01:48,709
He's not a sex worker.
1204
01:01:48,742 --> 01:01:51,779
There's people
in every industry
1205
01:01:51,812 --> 01:01:55,082
who have experienced some
form of abuse.
1206
01:01:55,115 --> 01:01:58,085
I would guess that it's
pretty equal across the board.
1207
01:01:59,019 --> 01:02:01,889
Uh, yeah.
1208
01:02:01,922 --> 01:02:03,424
I hope you can
forgive me,
1209
01:02:03,457 --> 01:02:06,026
and you don't have
to dance for me.
1210
01:02:08,996 --> 01:02:10,497
I don't know
all the reasons
1211
01:02:10,532 --> 01:02:13,602
why people ask
us these questions,
1212
01:02:13,635 --> 01:02:15,035
but I wish they wouldn't.
1213
01:02:21,008 --> 01:02:24,445
It didn't really occur to me
what had happened was rape
1214
01:02:24,478 --> 01:02:29,016
until I realized I hadn't
told my boyfriend about it,
1215
01:02:29,049 --> 01:02:30,784
which is always kind
of a flag,
1216
01:02:30,818 --> 01:02:32,453
because it usually
suggests to me
1217
01:02:32,486 --> 01:02:34,589
that there's some
type of shame
1218
01:02:34,623 --> 01:02:37,157
and I'm afraid
of talking about it.
1219
01:02:37,191 --> 01:02:41,262
I took the week off
from work.
1220
01:02:41,295 --> 01:02:44,699
I talked to the manager
1221
01:02:44,733 --> 01:02:46,601
who hired me.
1222
01:02:46,635 --> 01:02:49,169
I think this
is your fault.
1223
01:02:49,203 --> 01:02:51,372
There's security buttons
in the booth for a reason.
1224
01:02:51,405 --> 01:02:53,474
If you felt uncomfortable, you
should have hit the button.
1225
01:02:53,508 --> 01:02:58,078
You didn't,
so that's on you.
1226
01:02:58,112 --> 01:03:00,881
Well, you go from "You
can touch me here and here"
1227
01:03:00,914 --> 01:03:03,450
to something
shoved inside you,
1228
01:03:03,484 --> 01:03:04,985
and it happens so quickly.
1229
01:03:05,019 --> 01:03:08,188
Men know that people
aren't coming to the rescue
1230
01:03:08,222 --> 01:03:09,857
to sex workers.
1231
01:03:09,890 --> 01:03:12,192
Girls-- a lot of
Black girls, particularly--
1232
01:03:12,226 --> 01:03:13,628
are told to
keep their head down.
1233
01:03:13,662 --> 01:03:15,195
You're not supposed to
have any issues,
1234
01:03:15,229 --> 01:03:17,532
because it's
not worth your job.
1235
01:03:17,565 --> 01:03:20,568
The more money a
man seems to spend,
1236
01:03:20,602 --> 01:03:25,439
the more important he tends to
become versus performers.
1237
01:03:25,472 --> 01:03:29,943
Did I think about reporting the
incident to the police?
1238
01:03:29,977 --> 01:03:35,049
Ms. Werhun, the alleged incident
occurred at a strip club.
1239
01:03:35,849 --> 01:03:37,284
Now, first things first.
1240
01:03:37,318 --> 01:03:40,287
What kind of decent woman
works at a strip club?
1241
01:03:40,321 --> 01:03:43,123
- The kind that needs money.
- Money!
1242
01:03:43,157 --> 01:03:45,326
And would you say
that money is a prime motivator
1243
01:03:45,359 --> 01:03:48,429
- in your life?
- Well, I need money to eat
1244
01:03:48,462 --> 01:03:51,398
and pay my rent and
clothe myself, so yes.
1245
01:03:51,432 --> 01:03:54,636
Fascinating. Now, let me
get this straight.
1246
01:03:54,669 --> 01:03:56,538
Did you write this book?
1247
01:03:56,571 --> 01:03:58,105
Yes.
1248
01:03:58,138 --> 01:04:01,643
Your Honour, Ms. Werhun's
book is called Modern Whore,
1249
01:04:01,676 --> 01:04:03,177
and as she's
clearly stated,
1250
01:04:03,210 --> 01:04:07,716
she is a modern whore
motivated by money.
1251
01:04:07,749 --> 01:04:09,818
Ms. Werhun,
is it possible
1252
01:04:09,850 --> 01:04:12,119
that you fabricated
a rape allegation
1253
01:04:12,152 --> 01:04:15,055
against a married family man
who earns six figures
1254
01:04:15,089 --> 01:04:19,126
just so you'd have another story
to tell, you know--
1255
01:04:19,159 --> 01:04:22,630
--for the money?
1256
01:04:23,964 --> 01:04:25,800
I got an email
from Bob
1257
01:04:25,834 --> 01:04:28,969
asking when he could
come in and see me again.
1258
01:04:29,002 --> 01:04:32,406
Smiley face, as if
nothing had happened.
1259
01:04:32,439 --> 01:04:34,341
I responded back,
1260
01:04:34,375 --> 01:04:36,511
"Do not come to the
club ever again."
1261
01:04:40,682 --> 01:04:44,284
On those nights where
something did happen to me--
1262
01:04:44,318 --> 01:04:46,320
- Mm-hmm.
- I don't have to be afraid
1263
01:04:46,353 --> 01:04:47,921
for a single second that
you're going to feel
1264
01:04:47,955 --> 01:04:52,192
like I must have done
something to provoke it
1265
01:04:52,226 --> 01:04:56,029
or that I, you
know, deserved it.
1266
01:04:56,063 --> 01:04:58,298
- Mm-hmm.
- A lot of sex workers,
1267
01:04:58,332 --> 01:05:00,033
when they are open with
their partners
1268
01:05:00,067 --> 01:05:02,403
about what they do, they get
that kind of attitude.
1269
01:05:02,436 --> 01:05:05,573
You've never, ever, ever,
ever been like that with me.
1270
01:05:05,607 --> 01:05:07,241
- Mm-hmm.
- So, thank you.
1271
01:05:07,274 --> 01:05:08,777
Yeah.
You're welcome.
1272
01:05:10,010 --> 01:05:11,679
And yeah. For a lot of people,
1273
01:05:11,713 --> 01:05:14,381
that reaction might be
a fear reaction.
1274
01:05:14,415 --> 01:05:17,117
The response to trying
to reduce the harm
1275
01:05:17,151 --> 01:05:20,454
is to coerce the person
to not do sex work
1276
01:05:20,487 --> 01:05:23,390
or not put themselves
in situations in the future
1277
01:05:23,424 --> 01:05:25,560
where those things
are possible.
1278
01:05:25,593 --> 01:05:28,362
A few years later, I saw
Bob at the club again.
1279
01:05:30,130 --> 01:05:32,332
He was with an
entourage of people.
1280
01:05:37,505 --> 01:05:41,442
In that moment, I didn't feel
like I could do anything.
1281
01:05:41,475 --> 01:05:44,478
I felt... frozen.
1282
01:05:47,549 --> 01:05:49,383
It goes without saying
that the strip club
1283
01:05:49,416 --> 01:05:51,251
is a booze-drenched
environment.
1284
01:05:52,587 --> 01:05:54,789
It's a bar, after all,
and a pick-up line.
1285
01:05:54,823 --> 01:05:56,524
Hey, can I buy
you a drink?
1286
01:05:56,558 --> 01:05:58,693
Um, yeah.
1287
01:05:58,726 --> 01:06:03,230
I was probably having upwards of
12 drinks a night at work,
1288
01:06:03,263 --> 01:06:07,000
and when I
wasn't at work,
1289
01:06:07,034 --> 01:06:08,703
you know, I was partying, too.
1290
01:06:11,573 --> 01:06:14,809
I had a habit
1291
01:06:14,843 --> 01:06:18,178
of getting blackout drunk
1292
01:06:18,212 --> 01:06:19,647
and hitting my head.
1293
01:06:22,951 --> 01:06:24,117
For the first time in my life,
1294
01:06:24,151 --> 01:06:26,153
I was having seizures.
1295
01:06:27,120 --> 01:06:28,288
Ah!
1296
01:06:28,322 --> 01:06:30,525
Ah!
1297
01:06:30,558 --> 01:06:32,459
May I have another?
1298
01:06:32,493 --> 01:06:35,429
Why did I keep doing
this to myself?
1299
01:06:37,164 --> 01:06:39,701
Late one night, I was drunk
and riding my bike home
1300
01:06:39,734 --> 01:06:43,505
with a shopping bag
dangling from my handlebars.
1301
01:06:43,538 --> 01:06:45,138
It got caught
in the front wheel.
1302
01:06:45,172 --> 01:06:47,509
I flew off the bike.
1303
01:06:54,181 --> 01:06:58,553
I had suffered a
traumatic brain injury,
1304
01:06:58,586 --> 01:06:59,954
a pretty bad one.
1305
01:06:59,988 --> 01:07:02,857
I'd scraped the entire left
side of my face,
1306
01:07:02,891 --> 01:07:04,859
and if I hadn't been
wearing a helmet,
1307
01:07:04,893 --> 01:07:07,094
I would be dead.
1308
01:07:07,127 --> 01:07:08,997
Given my history
of seizures,
1309
01:07:09,029 --> 01:07:11,365
I was eventually
diagnosed with epilepsy,
1310
01:07:11,398 --> 01:07:13,100
and alcohol
was a trigger.
1311
01:07:13,133 --> 01:07:15,970
Andrea, if you have
another drink,
1312
01:07:16,004 --> 01:07:17,739
you might have
a seizure and die.
1313
01:07:19,406 --> 01:07:21,408
You want to write
another book, don't you?
1314
01:07:23,377 --> 01:07:25,980
I was scared shitless
by that comment,
1315
01:07:26,014 --> 01:07:29,517
so I haven't
drank ever since.
1316
01:07:29,551 --> 01:07:32,452
Six weeks later,
I was back at the club,
1317
01:07:32,486 --> 01:07:35,523
no alcohol,
much less confidence.
1318
01:07:39,359 --> 01:07:41,094
Fancy a dance
in the VIP?
1319
01:07:41,896 --> 01:07:44,264
Yeah. Yeah. I'll pass.
1320
01:07:45,432 --> 01:07:47,735
Come back
in 15 minutes.
1321
01:07:47,769 --> 01:07:49,336
Maybe I'll
change my mind.
1322
01:07:51,639 --> 01:07:53,073
Okay.
1323
01:07:53,106 --> 01:07:55,409
Strippers face a
lot of rejection...
1324
01:07:55,442 --> 01:07:57,377
in lingerie,
no less.
1325
01:07:59,313 --> 01:08:01,883
Sober sex work is always a
really interesting topic
1326
01:08:01,916 --> 01:08:03,216
for me to speak on,
1327
01:08:03,250 --> 01:08:04,986
because I
have done sex work
1328
01:08:05,019 --> 01:08:08,690
for my entire adult life
and part of my youth,
1329
01:08:08,723 --> 01:08:12,994
and I've done it under the sort
of auspice of sobriety now.
1330
01:08:13,027 --> 01:08:14,328
But I've also
done it, you know,
1331
01:08:14,361 --> 01:08:15,930
while being an
intravenous drug user,
1332
01:08:15,964 --> 01:08:19,132
while being, you know, someone
that was a heavy drinker,
1333
01:08:19,166 --> 01:08:20,535
while being someone
that, you know,
1334
01:08:20,568 --> 01:08:23,236
has done various other
sorts of substances
1335
01:08:23,270 --> 01:08:25,172
and also hired
exclusively to do
1336
01:08:25,205 --> 01:08:26,808
a lot of, like,
pay-to-party events,
1337
01:08:26,841 --> 01:08:29,309
because men hate
to do drugs alone.
1338
01:08:29,343 --> 01:08:30,578
What do you think of
the stereotype
1339
01:08:30,612 --> 01:08:32,814
that we all use drugs
to do our jobs?
1340
01:08:32,847 --> 01:08:34,015
I think that goes
hand in hand
1341
01:08:34,048 --> 01:08:35,215
with a lot of
different tropes
1342
01:08:35,248 --> 01:08:36,818
that come
along with sex work.
1343
01:08:36,851 --> 01:08:39,353
Substance users are villains
or villainized in society,
1344
01:08:39,386 --> 01:08:40,855
and so, of course, we are
villains because we are
1345
01:08:40,888 --> 01:08:42,857
sex workers. So it sort of,
like, ties in with that.
1346
01:08:42,890 --> 01:08:46,728
What are some of the pros
and cons of sober sex work?
1347
01:08:46,761 --> 01:08:49,329
Start with the pros.
My judgment is clearer.
1348
01:08:49,363 --> 01:08:54,334
I'm a lot less susceptible to
my boundaries being pushed,
1349
01:08:54,368 --> 01:08:55,803
but then it's also, like...
1350
01:08:56,971 --> 01:08:59,439
I have to listen
to their bullshit.
1351
01:08:59,473 --> 01:09:02,076
I can't, you know,
numb the conversation.
1352
01:09:02,110 --> 01:09:04,078
I have to be engaged.
1353
01:09:04,112 --> 01:09:05,947
Another pro, I guess
you remember everything,
1354
01:09:05,980 --> 01:09:08,116
but another con is that I
remember everything, you know?
1355
01:09:09,817 --> 01:09:13,253
Bob returned... again.
1356
01:09:13,286 --> 01:09:16,858
He had started to earn a
reputation at the club
1357
01:09:16,891 --> 01:09:19,694
for becoming
belligerently drunk.
1358
01:09:19,727 --> 01:09:21,194
Want to give me a beer?
1359
01:09:21,228 --> 01:09:24,431
You know, he's becoming
a very rowdy customer.
1360
01:09:25,600 --> 01:09:28,002
This time, things
were different,
1361
01:09:28,036 --> 01:09:31,338
because I was sober,
1362
01:09:31,371 --> 01:09:34,008
and I felt like I
was finally in a position
1363
01:09:34,042 --> 01:09:36,110
to be able to hold
him accountable.
1364
01:09:36,144 --> 01:09:38,278
You know, I wasn't
afraid anymore,
1365
01:09:38,311 --> 01:09:43,283
so I went to one of
my better managers, Phil,
1366
01:09:43,316 --> 01:09:46,186
and I told him
I wanted him out.
1367
01:09:47,789 --> 01:09:49,991
Well, I say we make sure
that he settles up,
1368
01:09:50,024 --> 01:09:53,193
because, uh, I don't want to get
in the way of anyone's money.
1369
01:09:53,226 --> 01:09:55,730
Then I'll inform him that
he's no longer welcome
1370
01:09:55,763 --> 01:09:57,330
in the club.
1371
01:09:57,364 --> 01:09:59,266
I told the gals
what was going on.
1372
01:09:59,299 --> 01:10:01,936
Do you want me to throw
piss in his face?
1373
01:10:01,969 --> 01:10:04,872
There's nothing like
stripper support.
1374
01:10:04,906 --> 01:10:06,406
Is this forever?
1375
01:10:07,575 --> 01:10:09,209
Yes.
1376
01:10:09,242 --> 01:10:10,410
Fuck you, man,
1377
01:10:10,444 --> 01:10:12,146
and your fucking place!
1378
01:10:12,180 --> 01:10:14,347
Phil was
being a good manager,
1379
01:10:14,381 --> 01:10:18,485
and for that,
I'll always be grateful.
1380
01:10:18,519 --> 01:10:22,456
When you don't consider a sex
work workplace a real workplace,
1381
01:10:22,489 --> 01:10:25,727
it's going to be run by a
different kind of law.
1382
01:10:25,760 --> 01:10:30,031
It's going to be run by a law
that's outside law enforcement,
1383
01:10:30,064 --> 01:10:31,498
for better or worse.
1384
01:10:35,002 --> 01:10:36,436
I think the victim trope
is prominent
1385
01:10:36,470 --> 01:10:41,109
because some people
would prefer us that way.
1386
01:10:41,142 --> 01:10:44,846
Being a victim is a
convenient title
1387
01:10:44,879 --> 01:10:48,049
when what you want to do is
actually victimize us.
1388
01:10:48,082 --> 01:10:50,118
We can never get
away from it.
1389
01:10:50,151 --> 01:10:53,420
The law also identifies
us as victims.
1390
01:10:53,453 --> 01:10:56,057
It takes consent
out of the matter.
1391
01:10:56,090 --> 01:10:57,592
It makes the assertion
1392
01:10:57,625 --> 01:11:00,962
that everything that we
do for money is by coercion.
1393
01:11:02,964 --> 01:11:04,665
We're either victims
1394
01:11:04,699 --> 01:11:07,267
who have no ability to
make choices for ourselves
1395
01:11:07,300 --> 01:11:08,770
or we're villains,
1396
01:11:08,803 --> 01:11:11,438
and the only choices we
make are bad and harmful.
1397
01:11:11,471 --> 01:11:14,041
And all we want to do
is hurt people,
1398
01:11:14,075 --> 01:11:16,511
particularly men.
1399
01:11:16,544 --> 01:11:20,715
But I don't think that
sex workers are even permitted
1400
01:11:20,748 --> 01:11:24,852
the grace of having
our work considered labour,
1401
01:11:24,886 --> 01:11:26,053
and I think that's wrong.
1402
01:11:35,630 --> 01:11:37,297
You know,
there's things that I do
1403
01:11:37,330 --> 01:11:40,300
that keep me grounded and
remind me of who I am.
1404
01:11:40,333 --> 01:11:41,736
A lot of that has to
do with writing
1405
01:11:41,769 --> 01:11:44,404
and creative expression
in general and performing
1406
01:11:44,437 --> 01:11:46,541
and being silly,
being a little ham.
1407
01:11:47,775 --> 01:11:49,309
I'd like to be...
1408
01:11:50,111 --> 01:11:51,512
An artist.
1409
01:11:51,546 --> 01:11:53,648
I'd love to make
a living with my art.
1410
01:11:55,216 --> 01:11:58,351
But I can't
afford it, yet,
1411
01:11:58,385 --> 01:12:01,622
and so until
that day--
1412
01:12:04,058 --> 01:12:05,458
--I work.
1413
01:12:07,862 --> 01:12:10,531
So long as the laws
don't protect us,
1414
01:12:10,565 --> 01:12:12,499
the stigma against
sex workers remains.
1415
01:12:12,533 --> 01:12:15,236
I can see your
cellulite, whore!
1416
01:12:16,771 --> 01:12:19,307
Alright, bud. That's
it. Night's over.
1417
01:12:19,339 --> 01:12:21,474
What are you doing, man? I
paid $10 for this beer.
1418
01:12:21,509 --> 01:12:23,778
- I'm not going anywhere.
- You've been nursing this beer
1419
01:12:23,811 --> 01:12:25,546
for almost two hours,
my man. Let's go.
1420
01:12:25,580 --> 01:12:27,548
- No. No. Come on! No!
- Let's go.
1421
01:12:27,582 --> 01:12:30,585
I'll get you! This
is not the last of me!
1422
01:12:33,855 --> 01:12:38,960
When it comes to my
own shame in sex work,
1423
01:12:38,993 --> 01:12:40,294
I don't have any.
1424
01:12:40,328 --> 01:12:41,762
The reality is,
1425
01:12:41,796 --> 01:12:44,232
not only have I
fucked for money,
1426
01:12:44,265 --> 01:12:47,467
I'm currently naked
on the internet.
1427
01:12:48,970 --> 01:12:50,338
I have no shame.
1428
01:12:50,370 --> 01:12:53,107
Let's be fucking
for real.
1429
01:12:53,140 --> 01:12:55,610
But when I
fell in love
1430
01:12:55,643 --> 01:12:59,013
and what I
did for work
1431
01:12:59,046 --> 01:13:02,449
was going to
affect him
1432
01:13:02,482 --> 01:13:04,552
and how his
family saw me,
1433
01:13:04,585 --> 01:13:07,521
that was the first time
I felt shame.
1434
01:13:07,555 --> 01:13:10,691
There's whorephobia against
the sex workers ourselves,
1435
01:13:10,725 --> 01:13:14,962
which, you know, brings us
the closest to violence,
1436
01:13:14,996 --> 01:13:17,899
and then there's all this sort
of, like, stigma by proxy--
1437
01:13:17,932 --> 01:13:19,432
- Yeah.
- That the people around us
1438
01:13:19,466 --> 01:13:21,636
have to experience just
by loving us.
1439
01:13:21,669 --> 01:13:23,604
Mm-hmm. Yeah.
People might have
1440
01:13:23,638 --> 01:13:27,508
a perfectly happy relationship
with a sex worker,
1441
01:13:27,541 --> 01:13:31,379
and then they encounter
some kind of outside stigma.
1442
01:13:31,411 --> 01:13:33,480
And they can't
overcome it.
1443
01:13:34,715 --> 01:13:36,784
And they're missing out
because of that.
1444
01:13:36,817 --> 01:13:39,086
Yeah. Yeah!
1445
01:13:40,554 --> 01:13:43,391
You taking the risk
1446
01:13:43,423 --> 01:13:46,560
and being brave and
being open
1447
01:13:46,594 --> 01:13:48,763
has forced me
to come to terms
1448
01:13:48,796 --> 01:13:51,666
with how I
talk about it
1449
01:13:51,699 --> 01:13:54,434
and how open I
am about it as well.
1450
01:13:54,467 --> 01:13:56,203
And is that
a good thing?
1451
01:13:56,237 --> 01:14:00,574
Yeah, of course. Yeah. I think
being truthful is important,
1452
01:14:00,608 --> 01:14:03,811
and I think being
honest is important.
1453
01:14:03,844 --> 01:14:06,080
I'm, you know,
sitting here on camera
1454
01:14:06,113 --> 01:14:08,716
because I hope that one day
you can be face out
1455
01:14:08,749 --> 01:14:11,585
and not be
assaulted, you know,
1456
01:14:11,619 --> 01:14:12,987
just because someone
knows you're a sex worker
1457
01:14:13,020 --> 01:14:14,922
or not be stalked online
or not be harassed
1458
01:14:14,956 --> 01:14:19,860
or, you know, banned
from apartments
1459
01:14:19,894 --> 01:14:22,863
and banned from
other types of work
1460
01:14:22,897 --> 01:14:25,700
and banned from,
you know, social spaces,
1461
01:14:25,733 --> 01:14:27,234
which has definitely
happened to me.
1462
01:14:27,268 --> 01:14:28,468
I think that that's the power
1463
01:14:28,501 --> 01:14:29,804
of, like, sex worker
storytelling.
1464
01:14:29,837 --> 01:14:31,539
It's, like,
reminding the public
1465
01:14:31,572 --> 01:14:33,240
that, like, we're actually
just, like, human.
1466
01:14:33,274 --> 01:14:37,378
It's not like sex workers
are these big, bad monsters.
1467
01:14:37,411 --> 01:14:38,779
Like, we're just people,
1468
01:14:38,813 --> 01:14:41,382
and, like, we deserve,
like, very basic rights.
1469
01:14:41,415 --> 01:14:44,218
We need to tell our stories
so that it normalizes sex work
1470
01:14:44,251 --> 01:14:47,121
and so that it normalizes
the quest for safety in our work
1471
01:14:47,154 --> 01:14:49,056
and the quest for respect
in our work and the quest for,
1472
01:14:49,090 --> 01:14:51,225
you know, basic, like, human
dignity and human rights.
1473
01:14:51,258 --> 01:14:53,594
I would like sex workers--
1474
01:14:53,627 --> 01:14:54,929
at least,
like, full service--
1475
01:14:54,962 --> 01:14:57,465
to kind of be seen
like a chiropractor.
1476
01:14:57,497 --> 01:14:59,467
Not everybody believes in it.
1477
01:14:59,499 --> 01:15:01,501
But like, the people who
love it love it.
1478
01:15:01,535 --> 01:15:02,903
That's right. That's right.
1479
01:15:02,937 --> 01:15:05,406
- And they swear by it.
- And they swear by it.
1480
01:15:05,439 --> 01:15:06,941
I'm so grateful
1481
01:15:06,974 --> 01:15:11,712
that despite your own
misgivings about my work...
1482
01:15:12,980 --> 01:15:14,148
You still love me.
1483
01:15:14,181 --> 01:15:15,583
Of course.
1484
01:15:18,886 --> 01:15:21,989
I just want to
thank you for...
1485
01:15:24,492 --> 01:15:26,694
...not abandoning me.
1486
01:15:26,727 --> 01:15:29,263
I could
never abandon you.
1487
01:15:29,296 --> 01:15:30,698
Would not happen.
1488
01:15:32,299 --> 01:15:33,734
When you were born, I remember
1489
01:15:33,768 --> 01:15:37,872
just looking at you all night.
1490
01:15:39,040 --> 01:15:41,510
I would just watch you
while you were sleeping.
1491
01:15:43,310 --> 01:15:45,846
I think I like
being looked at.
1492
01:15:46,914 --> 01:15:48,517
Maybe that's part
of it.
1493
01:15:49,950 --> 01:15:52,253
I think I associate
it with love and care.
1494
01:15:52,286 --> 01:15:53,854
Yeah.
1495
01:15:53,888 --> 01:15:56,924
The greatest privilege of
my life is being loved by you.
1496
01:15:56,957 --> 01:15:58,959
- Thank you, honey.
- So thank you.
1497
01:15:58,993 --> 01:16:01,762
Thank you. That makes
my life worthwhile.
1498
01:16:03,364 --> 01:16:05,499
Love you, Mommy.
1499
01:16:10,337 --> 01:16:14,041
This is the part of the
film where the sex worker
1500
01:16:14,075 --> 01:16:17,611
is usually punished for
her deviant ways
1501
01:16:17,645 --> 01:16:20,748
or saved from whoring
by a white knight.
1502
01:16:20,781 --> 01:16:25,352
Eternally, we play the
role of victim or villain.
1503
01:16:25,386 --> 01:16:26,887
We need a new archetype.
1504
01:16:28,055 --> 01:16:29,723
If the femme fatale--
1505
01:16:29,757 --> 01:16:32,693
Is a bold, sexually
powerful villainess
1506
01:16:32,726 --> 01:16:35,496
who destroys men
to get what she wants,
1507
01:16:35,530 --> 01:16:39,967
the femme vitale is
her positive opposite,
1508
01:16:40,000 --> 01:16:44,138
a person who loves themself
and fights for their community.
1509
01:16:45,507 --> 01:16:48,642
They are loved and
give love,
1510
01:16:48,676 --> 01:16:50,811
pleasure, joy.
1511
01:17:03,224 --> 01:17:05,826
When sex workers
tell our own stories,
1512
01:17:05,860 --> 01:17:08,729
we become the heroes,
not the victims,
1513
01:17:08,762 --> 01:17:10,364
of our
own journeys.
1514
01:17:11,765 --> 01:17:15,803
I have a story
that would remain hidden
1515
01:17:15,836 --> 01:17:20,040
if I let shame
take over my life,
1516
01:17:20,074 --> 01:17:22,276
and shame is
antithetical to truth.
1517
01:17:24,478 --> 01:17:25,913
Despite the odds,
1518
01:17:25,946 --> 01:17:28,415
sex workers
are here.
1519
01:17:28,449 --> 01:17:32,086
We are alive
and always will be.
1520
01:17:32,119 --> 01:17:35,489
One day, we will grow
like wildflowers,
1521
01:17:35,524 --> 01:17:37,925
unruly and free.
1522
01:18:02,183 --> 01:18:04,685
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1523
01:18:05,786 --> 01:18:07,955
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1524
01:18:09,790 --> 01:18:11,593
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1525
01:18:16,797 --> 01:18:18,832
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1526
01:18:20,669 --> 01:18:22,369
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1527
01:18:24,305 --> 01:18:26,207
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1528
01:18:27,808 --> 01:18:29,611
♪ Ooh ooh ooh ♪
1529
01:18:35,216 --> 01:18:37,084
♪ Ah ah ah ♪
1530
01:18:40,421 --> 01:18:44,391
♪ Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh ♪
1531
01:19:02,443 --> 01:19:06,947
♪ Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh ♪