# Have you ever known a sex worker? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 19, 2015, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071 "2015-02-19T05:56:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![ZPG\_Zealot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47c2d/32.png) [@ZPG\_Zealot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZPG_Zealot)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2015, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/61 "2015-02-20T21:13:42Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Of course I’m not speaking of wild, alcohol fueled craziness and partying. I’m speaking of a way of life. Wild, alcohol fueled craziness and partying is a way of life for some women. ---
**Author:** ![Last\_Glacial\_Maximum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bc79bd/32.png) [@Last\_Glacial\_Maximum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Last_Glacial_Maximum)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/62 "2015-02-21T00:02:25Z")
Many years ago when I was in the Peace Corps, one of my teen aged neighbors sold herself occasionally for money/food/clothes. Her situation was desperate. She was one of 3 young sisters living with their widowed father {who was a hopeless alcoholic}. {The mother had committed suicide a few years prior to my arrival in town}. She had 3 or 4 decent dresses to her name plus a few other worn out clothes. This poor girl just needed the basics of life and her Father would drink most of their money away. One thing though. She was very discreet about it and slept with the same 3 or 4 men consistently… She was blessed with an extraordinary figure and was quite easy on the eyes. I think this allowed her to be quite choosy. I found out about her activities by an unusual coincidence. It went unspoken between us for the next two years. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/63 "2015-02-21T01:12:40Z")
> [@ZPG\_Zealot](#): > > Wild, alcohol fueled craziness and partying is a way of life for some women. Kay?? 😕 What’s this got to do with anything? ---
**Author:** ![Andrew\_21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bcef8e/32.png) [@Andrew\_21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andrew_21)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/64 "2015-02-21T01:14:10Z")
> [@buddy431](#): > > [Usually, you can report your illegal earnings for exactly what they are](http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/28/news/economy/illegal-income-tax/). The IRS just wants their money, and they are not allowed to give out return information without a court order, and are not allowed to proactively tip off cops. I’m curious about this. The linked article says: _“If you tell the IRS you made $1 million from stealing money or dealing drugs, does the agency tip off the cops? Legally, it can’t, unless a law-enforcement agency gets a court order granting it access to a specific taxpayer’s return."_ [However](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/295/are-you-required-to-report-illegal-income-on-your-tax-return): _“If anybody was actually dumb enough to send in a list of his swag for the year, the folks at the IRS say they’d promptly alert the appropriate authorities.”_ Cecil’s column is old. Is it now outdated? ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/65 "2015-02-21T01:14:19Z")
> [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](#): > > To lazy to go back. I just remember you going on and on about how crack makes people sex maniacs and hookers or something like that. That was my retelling of my encounters with _one specific girl_ and it had nothing to do with my opinions on the state of illegal sex in this country. If you aren’t clear of what you’re talking about, it’s best to stay silent. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/66 "2015-02-21T01:18:16Z")
I knew a lot as a Peace Corps volunteer. In most of Cameroon, prostitution is one of the only paths of income available to young women, and where I lived there was very little stigma attached. Spending some time as a prostitute was almost considered a normal part of growing up, and even for married women it was sometimes a quietly tolerated way to earn extra money. I don’t think people were especially proud of it, but it was a part of the fabric of daily life for women. Drugs and heavy drinking weren’t very common among women- mostly people needed cash for food and basic household goods. In China, many of my college students engaged in forms of sex work. It was common to have older “sponsors” who would pay for fashionable clothes and other treats (and, in some cases, money to send back to the village) in exchange for favors. Others had more organized gigs keeping groups of men company at business dinners and the like, a situation that usually involved sex at some point. This was definitely seen as shameful, but it was also seen as a smart way to earn money. ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/67 "2015-02-21T01:19:29Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Again, in the US, this represents a _tiny_ fraction of “sex workers”. And I’m not referring to street walkers. The internet has exploded an entire new world of independent, low-end prostitution (but nowhere near the level of SWs). And, again, while that may be true (depending on your definition of tiny) they aren’t a small phenomenon in terms of actual numbers. Something like 2-4% of the women at many colleges are on a specific web site to date rich guys for money. The reason I bring this up is because I think it’s worth differentiating different kinds of transactional sex. I’d like to get rid of the low end variety (not through banning it but through rehab, jobs programs etc.) and at the very least make it less sleazy via regulation. I don’t think we really should want to stamp out the high- or middle-end stuff though. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/68 "2015-02-21T01:36:18Z")
> [@Hector\_St\_Clare](#): > > And, again, while that may be true (depending on your definition of tiny) they aren’t a small phenomenon in terms of actual numbers. Something like 2-4% of the women at many colleges are on a specific web site to date rich guys for money. I would make a large distinction between these types of “sugardaddy” transactions and traditional prostitution. For one, often times these girls don’t even perform any sexual acts with their rich sugar daddies. They are simply arm decoration and a pretty girl to be seen with in public, etc. Sometimes sex is included but that is also sex with just one (maybe two) men, in order to earn what they need to earn. So I would not consider these girls “prostitutes” in the common sense of the word. It’s very easy to be very selective of your clientele under these circumstances. Hookers, on the other hand, see high volumes of clientele (“high volumes” can vary depending on the “class” level of the prostitute) and they engage in sexual activity in order to earn their money. The classier, more expensive escorts (these are the ones who _usually_ don’t perform these acts out of desperation but out of financial interest alone) will necessarily need to see fewer men but they still have sex with multiple men on a regular basis. MOST prostitutes, and I’m NOT speaking of the lowly street walker, do what they do to earn money to support one or more unhealthy habit. And, surprisingly, most of these girls are pretty girls who hide their addictions fairly well. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/69 "2015-02-21T01:47:39Z")
I have known thousands in Thailand. Professionally in my salad days, on speaking terms with many now in my older years as I visit friends’ bars. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/70 "2015-02-21T03:06:23Z")
A goodly number. Quite often, the best bars to hang out in overseas were the cat houses. Guatemala City comes to mind as an example. The women were friendly, even if you didn’t wish to partake of the services. Pretty much all of them did it to survive. Many were illegals with no other options. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/71 "2015-02-21T09:58:09Z")
Norinew, a member here used to be in the industry (in an oblique way) . Sadly she has passed away. [Thread.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=286032) ---
**Author:** ![Martinmasoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@Martinmasoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martinmasoon)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/72 "2015-02-21T10:42:55Z")
I work at a bathhouse… i am a 20 yr old male sex-worker ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/73 "2015-02-21T20:54:17Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > I’ve made it clear in this thread I have no statistics, just extensive personal experience. …your “extensive personal experience” doesn’t seem to match up with the statistics, so I really don’t think you should say stuff like “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes” when you actually don’t have a clue of how the demographics of sex work break down. As I cited in the other thread: (NZ centric figures) > [@](#): > > Why sex work? > > People become sex workers for many different reasons, but mainly to meet their household expenses. Despite popular stereotypes, only a minority work to pay for drugs or alcohol; some work to finance university study or support their children. Some people do sex work part-time or over weekends to save money for a holiday, a house or a particular luxury item. Financial returns from sex work are better than those from many jobs that women do. [http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5](http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5) > **[pdf-811-kb-018607.pdf](https://www.otago.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/248760/pdf-811-kb-018607.pdf)** > > 819.21 KB Those are NZ statistics. In the United States in major population centres street walkers are estimated to make up only 10-20% of the population of sex workers. (Prostitution: A Difficult Issue For Feminists by Priscilla Alexander) I’m sure if you dig hard enough (and I’m not the one claiming “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes”, so if you want to stand by that, then its your job to prove it) you can find similar figures to the NZ study for the US. But stop claiming stuff as fact when it is clear that what you are saying is opinion based on anecdotal evidence. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/74 "2015-02-21T21:07:12Z")
> [@Banquet\_Bear](#): > > …your “extensive personal experience” doesn’t seem to match up with the statistics, so I really don’t think you should say stuff like “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes” when you actually don’t have a clue of how the demographics of sex work break down. > > As I cited in the other thread: (NZ centric figures) > > [http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5](http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5) > [http://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch/otago018607.pdf](http://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch/otago018607.pdf) > > Those are NZ statistics. In the United States in major population centres street walkers are estimated to make up only 10-20% of the population of sex workers. (Prostitution: A Difficult Issue For Feminists by Priscilla Alexander) I’m sure if you dig hard enough (and I’m not the one claiming “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes”, so if you want to stand by that, then its your job to prove it) you can find similar figures to the NZ study for the US. But stop claiming stuff as fact when it is clear that what you are saying is opinion based on anecdotal evidence. Ok, I think a distinction needs to be made between “sex worker” and “prostitute”. I was speaking of the latter. These stats refer to the former, which includes a hell of a lot more than prostitution. And again, I was NEVER talking about street walkers. Im talking about the vast majority of prostitutes who advertise online. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/75 "2015-02-21T21:27:16Z")
> [@Banquet\_Bear](#): > > …your “extensive personal experience” doesn’t seem to match up with the statistics, so I really don’t think you should say stuff like “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes” when you actually don’t have a clue of how the demographics of sex work break down. > > As I cited in the other thread: (NZ centric figures) > > [http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5](http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/sex-work/page-5) > [http://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch/otago018607.pdf](http://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch/otago018607.pdf) > > Those are NZ statistics. In the United States in major population centres street walkers are estimated to make up only 10-20% of the population of sex workers. (Prostitution: A Difficult Issue For Feminists by Priscilla Alexander) I’m sure if you dig hard enough (and I’m not the one claiming “Again, this represents a tiny fraction of all prostitutes”, so if you want to stand by that, then its your job to prove it) you can find similar figures to the NZ study for the US. But stop claiming stuff as fact when it is clear that what you are saying is opinion based on anecdotal evidence. > **[The happy hooker?](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1324819/)** This is just a cite supporting the notion that sex work is typically work sought out of desperation, desperation which often includes addictions. This fully supports my experiences, and in those experiences it has been addictions, in one form or another, that has spawned that desperation. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/76 "2015-02-21T22:06:12Z")
And let me reiterate, I am NOT talking about street-level prostitution. I am talking about the prostitutes who work in high end strip clubs, the ones who advertise on websites (some even have their own websites), etc. These are not dirty, toothless crackhead women. These are girls/women that you would not know are prostitutes unless you were told. And THESE girls, primarily at least, work to feed habits. ETA: When you are making several hundreds of dollars every day, a heroin habit (or whatever) can be maintained fairly well and the person can function without much outward sign of their addiction. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/77 "2015-02-21T22:20:28Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Ok, I think a distinction needs to be made between “sex worker” and “prostitute”. I was speaking of the latter. These stats refer to the former, which includes a hell of a lot more than prostitution. And again, I was NEVER talking about street walkers. Im talking about the vast majority of prostitutes who advertise online. …sex worker and prostitute are the same thing. And you don’t know anything about the vast majority of prostitutes who advertise online: you have actually already admitted this. > [@](#): > > [The happy hooker? - PMC](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1324819/) > > This is just a cite supporting the notion that sex work is typically work sought out of desperation, desperation which often includes addictions. This fully supports my experiences, and in those experiences it has been addictions, in one form or another, that has spawned that desperation. That isn’t a study. That’s an opinion piece. Its also UK centric, not US centric, which is what I suggested you look for. Random googling only shows that you actually don’t know what you are talking about, not that you do. > [@](#): > > And let me reiterate, I am NOT talking about street-level prostitution. I am talking about the prostitutes who work in high end strip clubs, the ones who advertise on websites (some even have their own websites), etc. These are not dirty, toothless crackhead women. These are girls/women that you would not know are prostitutes unless you were told. And THESE girls, primarily at least, work to feed habits. > > ETA: When you are making several hundreds of dollars every day, a heroin habit can be maintained fairly well and the person can function without much outward sign of their addiction. I don’t believe you. I’m sure this might be representative of the sex workers you know. But that says more about the sex workers you have chosen to associate with than anything at all with the occupation itself. Either go find some evidence to back up your assertions or stop speaking as if your opinions are actual facts. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/78 "2015-02-21T22:27:40Z")
Ok, fair enough. I bow out. But nowhere did I admit to knowing next to nothing about prostitutes who advertise online. That is practically where ALL of my knowledge has come from. That and the inner workings of illicit strip clubs. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/79 "2015-02-21T22:42:29Z")
> [@Banquet\_Bear](#): > > I don’t believe you. I’m sure this might be representative of the sex workers you know. But that says more about the sex workers you have chosen to associate with than anything at all with the occupation itself. Either go find some evidence to back up your assertions or stop speaking as if your opinions are actual facts. I didn’t see this at first read. With all due respect, I could give a rat’s ass whether you believe me or not. They aren’t my opinions or assertions, they are documented facts. A habit of heroin injection, in and of itself, assuming the drugs are pure and the equipment is sterile, isn’t what directly impacts the degradation of the addicts appearance and health. And when a heroin addict, who by it’s very nature, makes that addict desperate, finds a lucrative source for financing that addiction (internet ads) that takes them away from many of the dangerous, unhealthy, and potentially deadly elements of that addiction, that addiction can become a drug addicts version of a “functioning alcoholic”. This accounts for a portion of internet ads for prostitution but many, many more are from girls who find themselves in the perils of an addiction (pills, heroin, whatever) and have no other way to pay. But these are “normal”, everyday suburbia girls, they’d never walk the streets at night to “hook” a john. But the detached online ads seems so much more sterile and “ok”. And it’s not just in my area. It’s nationwide. It’s all the same. Some are controlled by pimps. Many are just young girls struggling with addiction (but who would never admit this to you) and trying this out. They also never last long. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071/80 "2015-02-22T00:38:19Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > I didn’t see this at first read. > > With all due respect, I could give a rat’s ass whether you believe me or not. They aren’t my opinions or assertions, they are documented facts. A habit of heroin injection, in and of itself, assuming the drugs are pure and the equipment is sterile, isn’t what directly impacts the degradation of the addicts appearance and health. > > And when a heroin addict, who by it’s very nature, makes that addict desperate, finds a lucrative source for financing that addiction (internet ads) that takes them away from many of the dangerous, unhealthy, and potentially deadly elements of that addiction, that addiction can become a drug addicts version of a “functioning alcoholic”. > > This accounts for a portion of internet ads for prostitution but many, many more are from girls who find themselves in the perils of an addiction (pills, heroin, whatever) and have no other way to pay. But these are “normal”, everyday suburbia girls, they’d never walk the streets at night to “hook” a john. But the detached online ads seems so much more sterile and “ok”. And it’s not just in my area. It’s nationwide. It’s all the same. Some are controlled by pimps. Many are just young girls struggling with addiction (but who would never admit this to you) and trying this out. They also never last long. …I don’t think you understand the meaning of the word “documented facts.” Statistics, that you have stated you don’t have and have no intention of looking for, could reasonably be described as “documented facts.” Stuff that you make up based on a few conversations and relationships you may have had over the years can not be reasonably be described as “documented facts.” A simple test for a “documented fact” would be this one: do you have any evidence, outside of personal anecdote, to support your assertion? As you have repeatedly said through the thread you do not, so it would be silly to accept what you say as anything else but what you have experienced. Personal anecdotes are okay. They are exactly what the OP of this thread has asked for. But I don’t think this thread was intended to be anything other than a search for anecdotes: and your fact free assertions really are distracting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-known-a-sex-worker/713071.md?page=5)