Sex Worked: Black Voices- Lies We're Told- Chloe & Armani- Chicago
THIS IS THE FIRST OF A SERIES OF STORIES, AS TOLD BY THOSE WHO LIVED THEM AND NOT THE AUTHOR'S VOICE! LISTEN TO THEIR WORDS, DON'T JUST READ THEM!
*"I think I was naïve like we all are as baby strippers. Armani and I (Chloe) have always been a package deal. We look like twins and we decided to capitalize on that. We're both part black & Filipina mixed, so we get pushed out by black people and Asians. Like, hey my blood is half like yours. WTF?! But it's like that everywhere you go, sometimes worse than others but in the stripper world I think that mix is what saved us! We look exotic to men and we stayed together. We did stage shows as a team. But over time it was like we stopped having control and the club capitalized on our shows more. I can't even say when that happened. Or maybe I never noticed until it got real hard to find work at a small club. I was over the "vegas" style clubs in Chicago and tried a DejaVu in Indiana. We used new names. I don't know what happened but it was crazy in there and I did not feel like they were there to look at me, but just try to buy me. We left and got a job back at a Chicago Heights club we were still on good terms with. But for Armani it got to be too much. Somehow she wasn't into our little gimmick like before and it was only later I found out why she just up and left. I started to think she never even wanted to talk to me again when she messaged me out the blue. The owner of the place we were at for maybe five years and went back to for maybe a year before she left, had been trying to force her into the champagne room with some customers that spent a lot and would stay in the rooms for hours. We all wondered why it's the same 4 girls get champagne rooms and most of us, even if asked, never make it up there. She was more "asian" & had green eyes with straight hair. They wanted her for a few high rollers and so she disappeared. She was ashamed because she had a little thing going with someone she shouldn't have and it got her backed in a corner. She gave me this statement to give you." (me- Sadie) I'm a nurse now. After she told me all of it, I never danced again."
Armani's statement: "It's hard to be a WOC (woman of color) in the sex industry but especially for lesbians or anyone in the gay community. I'm bisexual but it's not why I'm deciding to say my peace, even though it was me and my girlfriend, Chloe, all the way! This industry can twist you up and spit you out in so many ways you don't know. It's a real existential crisis when a woman is chosen - as if it's a badge of honor- to be forced to sexually appease VIP customers, based on her physical appearance. My girlfriend got looked over because she's darker than me, has curls & brown eyes. She's just as much Filipina as I am! But I got the light skin, light eyes & me hair is straight. So basically what, I look more white? Asian? Am I supposed to feel special? How TF does that make women feel who are actually escorts? I imagine they'd be angry if this they're reality too! For us it's all insulting but also because of how it all played out. When I stopped fooling around with my boss he said I had to meet his friend. I went into the champagne room and already he's on top of me. I just wanted it to end so I let him. I didn't fight. So it doesn't count as rape to them. But it was. I froze. Like my body wasn't mine. Then he throws money at me and said "thanks ni**€r bitch". I just left. I never told Chlo. My girlfriend of over five years. Now we both done. She's a nurse and I got my business degree. Maybe my story isn't an inspiration but we still faced a lot more than white girls and they made a lot more money. The came in. Spend a few hours with one guy upstairs and never go on stage or do dances. And they leave. Now I know why. Except it seemed like they had the schedules planned because they left after the guys did. So they only came in for an appointment or something. For me it wasn't like that. It's toxic but nobody cares about how it is for black girls. It's always white girls in the news. We have to be heard too!"
Chloe: "I'm proud of Mani. I'm proud she told someone. Some people think this is stupid. Or it makes no sense. But to me I don't know how fucked up it is to be skipped over for my "black" features even though we look like twins. It's what made guys like us more. But I'm not mad. I don't know what I am. I'm mad I can't go after the asshole who raped my (now) wife! This was in 2010 so it's whatever but I hope the girls out there never stop. We never knew our fight would matter. Not a whole decade ago!"
Chloe and Armani. Copied and pasted.
*"I think I was naïve like we all are as baby strippers. Armani and I (Chloe) have always been a package deal. We look like twins and we decided to capitalize on that. We're both part black & Filipina mixed, so we get pushed out by black people and Asians. Like, hey my blood is half like yours. WTF?! But it's like that everywhere you go, sometimes worse than others but in the stripper world I think that mix is what saved us! We look exotic to men and we stayed together. We did stage shows as a team. But over time it was like we stopped having control and the club capitalized on our shows more. I can't even say when that happened. Or maybe I never noticed until it got real hard to find work at a small club. I was over the "vegas" style clubs in Chicago and tried a DejaVu in Indiana. We used new names. I don't know what happened but it was crazy in there and I did not feel like they were there to look at me, but just try to buy me. We left and got a job back at a Chicago Heights club we were still on good terms with. But for Armani it got to be too much. Somehow she wasn't into our little gimmick like before and it was only later I found out why she just up and left. I started to think she never even wanted to talk to me again when she messaged me out the blue. The owner of the place we were at for maybe five years and went back to for maybe a year before she left, had been trying to force her into the champagne room with some customers that spent a lot and would stay in the rooms for hours. We all wondered why it's the same 4 girls get champagne rooms and most of us, even if asked, never make it up there. She was more "asian" & had green eyes with straight hair. They wanted her for a few high rollers and so she disappeared. She was ashamed because she had a little thing going with someone she shouldn't have and it got her backed in a corner. She gave me this statement to give you." (me- Sadie) I'm a nurse now. After she told me all of it, I never danced again."
Armani's statement: "It's hard to be a WOC (woman of color) in the sex industry but especially for lesbians or anyone in the gay community. I'm bisexual but it's not why I'm deciding to say my peace, even though it was me and my girlfriend, Chloe, all the way! This industry can twist you up and spit you out in so many ways you don't know. It's a real existential crisis when a woman is chosen - as if it's a badge of honor- to be forced to sexually appease VIP customers, based on her physical appearance. My girlfriend got looked over because she's darker than me, has curls & brown eyes. She's just as much Filipina as I am! But I got the light skin, light eyes & me hair is straight. So basically what, I look more white? Asian? Am I supposed to feel special? How TF does that make women feel who are actually escorts? I imagine they'd be angry if this they're reality too! For us it's all insulting but also because of how it all played out. When I stopped fooling around with my boss he said I had to meet his friend. I went into the champagne room and already he's on top of me. I just wanted it to end so I let him. I didn't fight. So it doesn't count as rape to them. But it was. I froze. Like my body wasn't mine. Then he throws money at me and said "thanks ni**€r bitch". I just left. I never told Chlo. My girlfriend of over five years. Now we both done. She's a nurse and I got my business degree. Maybe my story isn't an inspiration but we still faced a lot more than white girls and they made a lot more money. The came in. Spend a few hours with one guy upstairs and never go on stage or do dances. And they leave. Now I know why. Except it seemed like they had the schedules planned because they left after the guys did. So they only came in for an appointment or something. For me it wasn't like that. It's toxic but nobody cares about how it is for black girls. It's always white girls in the news. We have to be heard too!"
Chloe: "I'm proud of Mani. I'm proud she told someone. Some people think this is stupid. Or it makes no sense. But to me I don't know how fucked up it is to be skipped over for my "black" features even though we look like twins. It's what made guys like us more. But I'm not mad. I don't know what I am. I'm mad I can't go after the asshole who raped my (now) wife! This was in 2010 so it's whatever but I hope the girls out there never stop. We never knew our fight would matter. Not a whole decade ago!"
Chloe and Armani. Copied and pasted.
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