I think I get what you mean - reference my prior posting where I speculate that the interest in the party is based on a characterization of the relationship - ie, the big hat, loud colored clothing for the ‘pimp’ and the short leather skirt, big hair and lots of makeup for the ‘ho’.
as a matter of fact, a quick google on the word ‘pimp’ pulls up on the first couple of pages, mostly clothing ads for ‘pimp hats’ etc. I am reminded of a sit com episode of Cybil Shepards’ show, where she was ‘doing research’ about what it was like to be a hooker, she dresses in the big hair, lots of makeup, short leather skirt, high heels etc., saunters up to some one else dressed that way, of course, it’s another actress doing research, they both spot yet another, and that one turns out to be a social worker from teh local university, doing research.
When I was in my 20’s, I’d walk to work, and had to go through a known district. I would be wearing blue jeans, t-shirt, nothing provocative, fancy etc, had my hair in a bandana (hey, it was the late 70’s), carrying a backpack. And I’d get signaled. The prostitutes I worked with, when they were ‘on the job’ as it were, didn’t wear a lot of make up, mostly wore clothes you would see in any casual dress setting - skirt, blouse; jeans/top; rarely leathers or sequins etc. Shrug.
Originally posted by andros Personally, I’m disgusted by the cowardice shown by those who use the word “ho.”
If you want to say “whore,” fucking say it.
In the United States most pimps are perceived as being black males. If they choose to call their employees ho’s, instead of whores, then so be it. It probably has something to do with ebonics, not cowardice. I am acquainted with several of these employees, and they do not seem to have a problem with hearing the word ho, and would probably be offended by the word whore. If the purpose is to protect the feelings of the employee, then one should ask the employee if they had rather be called a ho, or a whore.
Personally, I see soemthing really funny if a man and woman who met at this party, some time later, end up getting married and having children. One day, saying to a grand child sitting on his knee, " You know, the night I met your grandma, she was the prettiest Ho I ever saw."
The relationship between the pimp and the ho has historically been all about overt violence and oppression. When a ho turns a trick do you know what percentage of money she gets to keep? None, the pimp takes 100% of the money and then decides how much he wants to give her.
Historically you are correct, but since around 1984 with the development of crack cocaine, the pimping business has changed. The pimps have become the tricks. I call them pimp tricks.
Most pimps are also crack cocaine dealers. The pimps have to sell the crack in order to have enough profit to take care of their ho’s crack addiction. It is a rare day when the ho brings in enough money to take care of her addiction. Most ho’s play games on the pimp, by taking the money she just made from a trick, and go to some other dealer to buy her crack. If the pimp finds out, and he usually does, then he has to disipline the ho.
There are many pimps that will play this game, just so they can call themselves pimps, it is all about status. The rare pimp, that can find a ho that is not smoking crack, will be viewed as the top pimp among his peers.
For a historical view of pimping, see the movie “The Mack”.
For a more recent view of pimping, see the video “Pimps Up Ho’s Down”. There is a segment in this video, where one of the pimps talks about how crack cocaine has changed pimping forever.
For those that are interested, the ho’ing business is driven by Johns (mostly married) with sexual fetishes and paraphilias that are not being satisfied at home. To verify this, just talk to one of your local ho’s.
Yes. I seruously want to know the point of using the term “ho” instead of “whore.” If it’s just because it’s marginally less offensive and makes people feel more comfy, then fine, I guess I’d understand that. I’d still find it ludicrous and wussy, but I’d understand.
:rolleyes:
I have a feeling that there are very few Huggy Bears at Amherst.
And I’m truly sorry, but The Mack is fiction (not to mention an appallingly awful film). It’s a Richard Pryor movie, for gawd’s sake, and is in no way a documentary. Sheesh. I might as well go rent Airplane to get a historical view of piloting.
Well, andros to answer your question, in an attempt at not sounding racist. It has to do with ebonics mostly. The “r” gets dropped off of a lot of words. So something pronounced hore (whore = hore) turns into ho’. So then you have a lot of inner city kids coming into the hip-hop genre rapping about whores, which they pronounce ho, and it gradually gets spelled ho, as well. Just like z’s get placed instead of s’s and so on. Anyways, middle-class white kids eat this urban hip-hop up and start using the phrase ho, just as they heard it pronounced and spelled on the rap album. So then you get pimps and ho’s, which is actually a party playing on the fact that you have a bunch of middle class white kids who don’t know what the hell that culture is all about, and these kids know they don’t know what the hell it’s all about. So yeah. That’s my theory if it is coherent.
I would posit that there’s an enormous difference between a “pimp and who” party and a “pimp and whore” party… the way the terms are used, a ‘ho’ is a fictionalized character from blaxploitation films and rap videos, probably with a sassy mouth. A ‘whore’ is an actual honest to god prostitute.
I’m not saying that it’s tasteful to have a “pimp and ho” party, but it’s certainly a good bit more tasteful than having a generic prostitution party… like the difference between “ninjas” and “murderers”, say… (slightly bad example, but the best I could think of)
And I’m truly sorry, but The Mack is fiction (not to mention an appallingly awful film). It’s a Richard Pryor movie, for gawd’s sake, and is in no way a documentary. Sheesh. I might as well go rent Airplane to get a historical view of piloting.
Sorry, I did not mean to infer that “The Mack” was a documentary. I was referring to the psychological conditioning that the pimp used to recruit and maintain his ho’s.
I once had a mistress who convinced me to buy “The Mack” video, we would watch it 2-3 times per week. She had nothing but admiration for the pimp. Someone did a questionaire study at a University, asking the males what they thought about the occupation of pimping. I can not remember the percent, (I think it was more than 50%) but they thought that pimping was a cool idea.
I remember reading this case history of a female physician, who worked her way thru college by being a ho (prostitute). After she became a licensed physician, she would still turn tricks, because she missed the life style of being a ho. Studying female sexual fantasies, I think you will find that fantasizing about being a ho, is a popular fantasy for many females.
If you want to se an actual documentary about pimping, check out “American Pimp”.
Perhaps the most interesting thing I got from the movie was seeing how these guys dress. Imagine the most stereotypical pimp in the worst blaxploitation film you can think of guys. The ACTUAL pimps looked like WORSE stereotypes. If you were making a film, you couldn’t take one of these actual true-to-life pimps and cast him in his actual wardrobe, because it would look too ridiculously stereotypical. You would have to tone it down by like 80 percent in order not to have your audience laughing at the guy.
:: I was once subjected to a Pimp-Ho party. It was also technically University-sponsored - it was thrown by the University-owned, but student-run, campus pub. I was young and foolish (only 18), so I accepted the invitation. Why, oh why, didn’t anyone warn me?!!
::shudder:: It was horrible. Loud music, copious amounts of alcohol, and attractive young people in skimpy outfits. I tried to block out the stereotypical images assaulting my eyes with a comforting haze of alcohol, but it only made things worse.
::waah:: That “party” scarred me for life. Since then, I can’t help but objectify women. Were it not for that party, I would be happily married now, living in the suburbs with a white picket fence, 1.6 children and an SUV. DAMN YOU, PIMP-HO PARTY!!
Cite? This is Great Debates, it would probably be good if you had some sort of reference.
Regarding the OP - I dunno - one of my male friends dressed up as a pimp and 3 of my male friends dressed up as his hos this halloween. I thought it was kinda funny. I think as long as there was no stipulation that the men had to be the pimps and the women had to be the prostitutes, I don’t see how this party is any different than a Rocky Horror party. Bunch of people, in drag, having a good time.
The word “ho” (as opposed to “whore”) comes from that sketch that Eddie Murphy did on Saturday Night Live back in the 80’s. He played a pimp character named Velvet Jones, and he was flogging a book he had written, called “I Wanna Be a Ho”. It caught on, and so twenty years later you have “Pimp and Ho” parties at Amherst College.
Um. Doubt it. I heard ‘ho’ (specifically “mo-fo-ho” ) back in the late 70’s at the women’s correction center (and andros that was why I personally used that term - kinda like calling Charleton Heston ‘Chuckie’ )
I’m a feminist, and I don’t really see a problem with it.
Back when I was in school, there was a yearly “Dress to Get Laid” party. (Not school sponsored.) I never went because I felt personally uncomfortable about it, but I thought it was a cool idea.
Would I support a pimp/ho party? Does a dog wipe its butt on the carpet?
Imagine a university that’s known for its bars. So much so that parties peter out about 10:30-11 because everyone wants to go bar hopping. For some psychotic reason, people want to pay $3 for the same beer that they were getting for free a few minutes earlier.
Now dress the girls up in short black leather skirts, add those 18 inch heeled shoes, sprinkle in some cleavage, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for a killer party. Girls don’t want to go to bars dressed like hookers, so the party rages on until 1 or 2 in the morning.
Best damn party I went to. I’d do it again in a second.
All of this, by the way, was in the name of fun. Girls dressed up like this by choice. I never, for ONE SECOND, felt that because I donned a feathered hat, I suddenly was an oppressive male and could subjugate the females to my whim. That’s absurd. Probably more so than the Nazi analogy, which is pretty far up there as far as I’m concerned.
And I object to Halloween. Dead people have rights too. It’s incredibly insensitive to the billions of dead people (who form a majority both in the USA and in the world) to see a bunch of twerps making a mockery of them…every year. Discrimination against the dead is rampant in this country, and y’all would have us celebrate it every Oct 31? Death can happen to anyone, you know…
: I was once subjected to a Pimp-Ho party. It was also technically University-sponsored - it was thrown by the University-owned, but student-run, campus pub. I was young and foolish (only 18), so I accepted the invitation. Why, oh why, didn’t anyone warn me?!!