'My wife doesn't have those skills'

[evanovitch]

'My wife doesn't have those skills'
Strip club patrons all have different reasons for coming and getting hooked
BY TYRONE S REID Sunday Observer staff reporter [email protected]
Sunday, July 06, 2008



"The big difference between sex for money and sex for free is that sex for money usually costs a lot less."


- Irish dramatist Brendan Behan
WHEN the sun goes down across Jamaica, the heat is turned up on the strip club/sex shop scene. From Kingston to Montego Bay, men of all ages and socio-economic backgrounds come out to play with 'the girls', with the seductive sounds of the night as their intoxicating soundtrack.

Depending on the night of the week, these exotic establishments are either full or half-full, but there is no limit to the flow of single dollars and expensive liquor as the 'party' really starts to groove. Back home, their wives and kids are probably fast asleep while they are here, getting their groove on as the music pulsates from the speaker-boxes and the lithe young ladies work the poles, moving their endowed chests and rotating their hips as if their lives depend on it. This goes on till the crack of dawn, especially on weekends.

The male patrons will readily tell you they go to strip clubs for the allure of the 'pretty young things'. For them, the strippers and private dancers are objects of high art as they move in all different erotic styles, showing off their skills. The dancers do all this with the hopes of getting the men (with eyes affixed to the stage) interested in buying a lap dance or more - if the price is right - which the men often do. Lap dance prices, we are told, start at $500.

On this particular Friday night at an exotic club in Kingston, it is amazing how one talented dancer works her magic on a middle-aged man in spectacles, still in his work clothes. The whole time she is writhing and wriggling in his lap, she's whispering all kinds of provocative things in his ear. All the while he's holding her and looking at her like she's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen.

Speaking with the Sunday Observer briefly after his five minutes with the 'chocolate honey', he reluctantly gives his name as Brian. He's 31 and works in advertising.

He's also married with a pregnant wife at home.

"My wife doesn't have those skills," he says, before taking a swig from his Heineken bottle. "I come here a lot, especially on a Friday night, before I go home to my wife so that I can be in the mood to make love to her good an' proper."

Jason, a single 25-year-old, just loves the attention he gets from the strippers during his weekly visits. For men like Jason, it's not all about the arousing lap dances. Some of these men come seeking a listener - someone who will sit there nodding and smiling, hanging on to their every word.

"Sometimes it's not the lap dance alone. The experience of talking to a pretty, pretty girl is not something yutes like me get all the while," Jason explains.

On the other hand, for many men, strip clubs take the edge off the desire to step out of their committed relationships. Especially when no sex is involved, there are no repercussions to consider: no unprotected intercourse that could lead to STDs, no unwanted pregnancies and there are no emotional entanglements to worry about; no strings attached.

Barry, 30, a freelance music producer, is seated in a dark corner of the club. He says he's just here to enjoy the music. "Mi have mi girlfriend, but because mi love the music mi come to the club to hear some tune and watch the dancers dance," he says. "Mi nuh believe in the [sex] transaction thing, but some man into that and mi nuh have a problem wid dat."

Psychologist Leahcim Semaj lists the visual stimulation and no-strings-attached ease men get at these establishments among the driving factors behind the success of strip clubs and sex shops.

"Men have always been attracted to the female body. It goes back to the historical days. At the same time, some men feel they are not being adequately satisfied at home so they go to the clubs for the visual stimulation and when they return home to their wives or girlfriends, they incorporate those images into their sex lives. The more deprived of sex a man is, the more he'll be inclined to visit these clubs," Semaj told the Sunday Observer.

"Men are more visually stimulated than women. Some people say prostitution works out cheaper for the man than marriage. Both the man and the prostitute or stripper are getting what they want from each other and they both leave satisfied. These adult establishments can be seen as mechanisms for expressing sexuality."

Robert, a businessman in his late 40s, corroborates Semaj's argument, saying his wife 'benefits' from his late-night exploits.

"You just come to the club, look and fantasize and get turned on. It's a pep up for my marriage and my wife reaps the benefits when I go back home," he says laughing. "Sometimes I think she suspects, but she doesn't say anything and I don't say anything either. She doesn't complain. When you're married for over 15 years, sometimes you need a little extra spice to your relationship. And is that such a bad thing? Talk the truth."

He admits though that he's getting too old and might soon call it quits on his lengthy strip-club affair.

"Eventually, I might stop coming to the club, but not anytime soon. I don't see a pressing reason to stop right now. This is just good, harmless fun. Don't it?" he asks, before making another trip over to the bar.

[evanovitch]

Strippers vs hookers

Strippers vs hookers
Who is raking in the big bucks?
BY TYRONE S REID Sunday Observer staff reporter [email protected]
Sunday, July 06, 2008



IT'S a warm and breezy Friday night at a popular adult entertainment establishment called Pablo's, on Eastwood Park Road in St Andrew.

There is a sea of expensive-looking cars in the parking lot, and several male patrons are outside in the yard swilling liquor. A group of young women are gossiping and checking out the men - and there's a burly security guard in a black shirt, cap and jeans standing by the small gate collecting the $300 entrance fee from the patrons as they roll in.




The second you walk into the club, they notice you. There seems to be a ripple effect of some sort. Two good-looking, skimpily-dressed young girls walk by, looking at me smilingly, like I'm the most attractive man they've ever seen. The women, dressed in fishnets, tiny shorts and bras are strippers - also referred to as 'go-go' or 'strip dancers'.

By all accounts, the operators of these establishments - found in major towns across Jamaica - the dancing girls and the men flocking to the clubs to pay to see them, are collectively driving the sex industry in Jamaica, which is reportedly raking in millions of dollars.

Back inside the club, the place is lined wall to wall with men. The bar is buzzing and a pool table nearby is like a flame attracting some of the men. I choose a corner spot and settle down to watch a rotation of beautiful girls (most in their twenties) of various sizes and descriptions dance onstage. There is even a pregnant dancer onstage working the pole like a pro. A few make eye contact. Lisa, a fair-skinned girl and the skinniest of the bunch, turns towards me after seeing my notebook. She makes her way over and a conversation ensues.


"I've been dancing for about two years now and I like it a lot. I have a nine-month-old son and that is how I take care of him, by dancing," the 24-year-old says.

She is intelligent.

"I dance like three nights a week and use my days off to spend time with family in Montego Bay."

She makes it clear that she is strictly a dancer who does not engage in any kind of "loose behaviour". She only provides lap dances.

"Darling, to tell you the truth, when I get tips that is when I make most of my money. I don't need to do anything else with the men. I am satisfied. My boyfriend takes care of me otherwise. He trusts me because it was at the club I first met him, and now we have a baby together," she reveals.

By this time, a group of heavy-set men enter the club and Sasha, 26, takes Lisa's place by my side.

She is wearing a two-piece bathing suit with six-inch heels.
"I love my job; it is fun. I don't feel no way about what I do. It is just a job like what anybody else has. It's what we do to make our living,"
she says.

Sheryl, 33, also has no qualms about her line of work, pointing out that she enjoys getting large tips and is saving up to open a beauty shop.

"I don't do 'business'," she says, meaning sex for money. "I don't agree with it. I will dance and collect the tips plus my weekly pay from the boss. That is enough for me," she adds.

As the night picks up, more men enter the club.

But it's not just men; a few women are here too, some with male companions and some by themselves. A quick chat with one of the couples reveals that they're here "to spice up their love lives". Others say they're here out of curiosity. Whatever the reason, the dancing girls don't seem to mind. In fact, they seem to gyrate their hips more wildly in front of the couples than for men sitting alone.

Sunday Observer checks reveal that the most popular strip joints in Kingston boast provocative names like 'Bodies', 'Hummingbird', 'Pretty [censored] [censored]', 'Palais Royale', 'Caesar's', 'Platinum' and 'The Office'. Out-of-towners are known to frequent 'Shades' in Ocho Rios, 'Finger Pole' in Mandeville, 'Silver Spoon' and the 'Back Road' area of Port Henderson in Portmore, St Catherine.

At the same time, there are many players who work in the field of sex work: the dancers, the prostitutes, the pimps, the operators of strip clubs/escort agencies/ massage parlours and the patrons who shell out the big bucks. And if the words of Garcia, the supervisor at Pablo's, are anything to go by, most strippers make "decent" money nightly.

"Yes, they make good money. We pay them separately from the tips that they get from the men. On an average night, they get upwards of $1,800 and on special nights they get over $2,100. For the week, they can make over $10,000. When they add that to the tips they get, they are alright for the week. They are able to work up to five days a week and they get two nights off. But that's just in Kingston. On the north coast and in places like MoBay and Negril, the girls make much more," says Garcia, a short, light-skinned lady with low-cut dark hair. "We provide a safe environment here for them. The security is tight, and everybody is well-protected. If you respect your job, it will respect you. The dancers are not allowed to go out into the yard or on the street in their costumes."

The dollars seem to flow freely inside the club.

It's the same at another hotspot we visited in New Kingston, where the men range from husbands with dazzling wedding rings to young, thug-looking brothers.

But these days the money is not flowing freely for sex workers of every category. While the strip clubs and sex shops are reporting good business these days, the street prostitutes make it clear that their 'business' is not as lucrative as it once was. According to several of them who shared their stories with the Sunday Observer recently, the clubs are wooing their men. But that's not all. With the spotlight now being focussed on the sex industry more than ever, they say many of their regular customers have become fearful and refuse to visit them on the streets. Consequently, life is bleak for New Kingston hookers like Pat, Marcia, Likkle Miss, Audrey, Apple and others.

"This is the worst year of all. trus' me. The man dem not coming out to we like one time; dem scared. So mi have nuff bills pile up right now," explains 24-year-old Marcia, a single mother of one, who has been a prostitute for seven years. A friend introduced her to the practice.

I encounter over a dozen variations of Marcia's story. Some complain that the homosexual male prostitutes are taking away their customers and are ridiculing them. (The gigolos, we are told, work from sex houses). The prostitutes say they sometimes drop their prices. For sexual intercourse, they charge $1000, for quickies and oral sex $800 and to spend the night with her will cost $5,000.
"We haffi deal wid police harassment, too, because sometimes the police dem run wi dung and make it worse fi wi nuh make no money. If them catch we wid a man, them charge the man dem some $10,000 and $15,000 and we not making that," shares Stacy, a 30-year-old. She is clad in black lingerie.

Stacy, who operates in the Braemar Avenue area, says she has to provide financially for her two kids. "And from the government start talk 'bout sex tax, it getting worse fi we. We don't want so much attention. It not good fi business at all. I have two kids to send to school and I don't have no help. This is my only source of income."
Out on Trafalgar Road in New Kingston, Pat, 38, and Likkle Miss, 41, also share tales of close encounters with men who tried to rob and kill them. But with no other source of survival, they still come out after dark to sell sex.

As the women share their sad tales, a few cars drive pass.
A few of the drivers slow down but none of them stop, despite the pleas and compliments from the women.

In the meantime, Sunday Observer sources reveal that in towns like Ocho Rios and Montego Bay, the experiences of sex workers are vastly dissimilar. Reportedly, some sex workers (including the transgendered variety) seek out tourists to date, sometimes without asking explicitly for cash in return for 'favours'. Instead, they derive benefits from staying at swanky hotels, dining at expensive restaurants, partying at all-inclusive resorts and attending high-end social events.

"Many of these women regard themselves as 'escorts' who do not charge for sex but for the 'island girlfriend' experience. They often cook and clean for these men, and even carry them on tours of the town. It's very discrete," one source tells the Sunday Observer from a popular hotel in Ocho Rios. "You also have male escorts who cater to female tourists and this is very popular here in Ochi and in MoBay and Negril where you have the major all-inclusive resorts."

Last summer, during a Sunday Observer visit to the White River rafting attraction in St Ann, we met O'Neil, a lifeguard who bragged about the many female tourists he's had sex with for money.
"Whenever the whitie dem come down pon the plane or the cruise ship, tings always gwaan. Mi get nuff tips and ting. One of them even promise fi send fi me so mi a wait fi see how dat go," he boasted.

Beyond the monetary hustle that goes on in the sex industry, one cannot avoid the fact that there is an underside to this sexual candyland. The HIV epidemic is everywhere and sex work, by definition, entails exposure to sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The sex workers, both in the clubs and on the streets, insisted that they use protection whenever they engaged in sex acts with customers. But with the prevalence of STIs in Jamaica, Lovette Byfield, Director of HIV Prevention at the Ministry of Health, says interventions and peer education training for sex workers is important in contemporary Jamaica as the number of sex workers operating in Jamaica continues to climb at alarming rates.

"The figures keep jumping all over the place so we don't have a set [total] to give. We are working on that currently," Byfield said. Health workers from the ministry including Richard Reid and Bernice Fearon visit strip clubs and prostitute hangout spots weekly to distribute condoms and impart knowledge about safe sex practices.
"We just come out to educate the sex workers and the men who come here about condom use and STI prevention. We try to engage them in risk reduction conversations," said Fearon, whom we met at Pablo's.

Reid said they also use their weekly visits to invite patrons to their workshops on safe sex practices.

"We also teach them how to invest their money wisely. I think it's an honest living for these women and some of the men who do it too, so we don't condemn them," Reid said.

While local and international experts like Dr Veronica Salter argue that many women who turn to prostitution and other forms of sex work are "hurt and abused women looking for love", psychologist Dr Leahcim Semaj says this is not always the case.

"There are women out there who simply enjoy dancing and granting sexual favours in exchange for money. You have some dancers who love their work and see it as a semi-professional way of getting into prostitution. There are dozens of reasons for women becoming prostitutes," Semaj explained.

Meanwhile, Marsha Grant, who works with the National Sex Workers Association, said she also believes the number of sex workers in Jamaica is growing rapidly. A group of them, she said, came together in March of this year to form the association.

"They're really just a group of sex workers who've come together so that they can better address issues affecting sex workers in Jamaica, like lack of access to health care, education and security." said Grant. She added that the group was looking out for the best interest of sex workers.

Back inside Pablo's, Lisa is relaxing on a black sofa. Like many other Jamaican sex workers, she says she has ambitions for "a better future".

"I'm saving up my money to go to cosmetology school. People might look at me, and because I'm young and they see me dancing, they might think I'm confused but I know what I want in life," she declares boldly.

"I plan to continue dancing and making this money until I'm ready to stop. The men like it. That's why they come to the club."

[evanovitch]

Sex, lies and murders?

Sex, lies and murders?
Career prostitute says she killed two pimps in the US and an alleged robber in Kingston
BY TYRONE S REID Sunday Observer staff reporter [email protected]
Sunday, July 06, 2008



SHE says she has killed three men - two pimps and an alleged robber. She snapped their necks.

The 41-year-old sex worker, who did not wish to be named, admits that at least one of the incidents was "self-defence".

The woman, who has a black belt in karate told the Sunday Observer that she has been a prostitute for about two decades.

According to her, the fighting skills she attained have come in handy on countless occasions as she has had to defend herself against attackers and "persons trying to take advantage of me".

"I had to kill two pimps who mess with me and my money when I was working in the US. I broke their necks and ran away," she told the Sunday Observer.

"When I returned to Jamaica four years ago, I was working on a street corner in downtown, Kingston and a young fellow tried to rob me by grabbing my bag, so I hold him and break his neck too. The police came afterwards, but I didn't get in any trouble because it was self-defence," she said, very matter-of-factly.

Checks with the Central Kingston Police to prove the veracity of her tale were unsuccessful as the officers said they could find no record of the incident.

When the Sunday Observer encountered her two weeks ago, she was awaiting 'customers' in New Kingston. During a 20-minute interview by the street side, she recounted her life story for the Sunday Observer in chilling details - touching on the childhood abuse she suffered at the hands of her stepfather, running away from home in Kingston at age 15; hooking up with a pimp by age 20 and travelling the country and the region, selling her body for years to come.

She says she has to sell her body to support herself and survive.

"It's been the only thing I could ever really depend on to get money to take care of myself. I love sex and I love getting paid for it," she said in a thick American accent.

She was dressed in a revealing black blouse, a pair of purple tights and expensive-looking satin pumps. Her lips are rose red, her make-up is flawless and her cream-milk complexion appears to glow on the dimly-lit street.

"It's been over 20 years now, and I still enjoy the experience. I have not only worked in Jamaica. I have worked in St Kitts, Trinidad and in the US, where the money is very good," she confides.

Her colourful story also includes stints off the street - at a time when she was encouraged by acquaintances and well-wishers to turn over a new leaf.

"A friend I knew back in the day took me off the road for me to start my life over when I was about 30 or so. I tried it for a while but I was miserable because things weren't going my way. No proper living and working arrangements had been made for me, so I just decided to come back out on the streets where I know money is guaranteed to at least buy some food," she said, her eyes watching the cars which slowly drove by.

But she is quick to point out that these days, 'business' is slow in New Kingston.

"It's not good. It's very poco-poco. The men are not coming out like they used to," she told the Sunday Observer. "Nowadays, I mostly get older men for customers, and only a few young men. It's not good at all."

Despite the dangers she has encountered in the past and her personal struggles, she says she doesn't see an end to her 'career' anytime soon, even as her 42nd birthday draws closer.

"As long as I have this body and men want me, I will continue what I am doing. I don't have another job. I don't have a man to support me. This is all I have. This is who I am. This is me."

[evanovitch]

Haitian dancers fire up north-coast clubs

Haitian dancers fire up north-coast clubs
published: Sunday | July 6, 2008

THE GUNS-for-drugs trade between Jamaica and Haiti has taken an exotic twist as female nationals from the French-speaking country are now providing entertainment at some of the popular nightspots on the island's north coast.

The Sunday Gleaner reported recently that the Haitian women, on most occasions, arrived as part of the barter agreement. The report also disclosed that in order to survive, the women accepted meagre wages, sometimes as low as $250 per day, to work in bars, shops and other small businesses.

"Most of them would be largely undereducated and unskilled and for that reason alone, they pose social challenges, and they are not going to be able to take care of themselves financially," commented head of Operation Kingfish, Assistant Commissioner of Police Glenmore Hinds.

new sensation

A visit recently to an exotic club in a resort town on the north coast by a Sunday Gleaner team confirmed that our Caribbean sisters are now the new sensation in night entertainment in Jamaica.

The place was abuzz with activity when we arrived at 11 p.m. Music coming from inside the venue filled the Thursday-night skies, as patrons waited on the 'main event'.

Three police officers, who were identified by their red-and-black vests marked 'Police' and bearing the respective regulation numbers on the back, searched patrons for weapons and cameras.

On entering, we observed six local dancers moving to the beat of disco music as they utilised the pole located in the centre of the stage to do acrobatic stunts, while shamelessly soliciting tips from the hordes of male and female patrons in attendance.

A group of men seated at the bar was involved in a heated discussion as to who was the best looking of a group of young women seated together in an area of the venue. We later learned that these were the four women from Haiti who had triggered a renewed interest in exotic club life.


As it drew near to the 2 a.m. 'show time', those on the outside entered and began to seek vantage points to witness the special feature. The master of ceremonies, after warning that "the special performers" would not be offering any tricks so they should not be approached, got the show under way.

The local dancers were the first to come on stage, and despite a variety of sensual acts, failed to create an impact on the capacity crowd. It was a totally different scenario, however, when our sisters from the French island graced the dance floor.

No language barrier could prevent the understanding created by the male patrons and the in-demand performers, as they gyrated, teased and performed daring stunts to the delight and encouragement of a gathering that mimicked their many attempts to dance to reggae music.

With news of the Haitians' prowess spreading far and wide, the club's management had hired a bouncer to guard them, fearful that the immigration authorities might attempt to arrest their newfound drawing cards.


While the presence of Haitians could mean local dancers losing some of their popularity, at least one waitress is glad they are here: "It means more tip for me," she told The Sunday Gleaner. "Ever since them start do them thing here about five weeks ago, me leave here feeling good; the more customer, the more tip me get," the waitress added.

According to her, only one of the Haitian dancers spoke English, and claimed she was a schoolteacher in her poverty-stricken country in a town called Roseau, some 50 miles from the nation's capital of Port-au-Prince. She also revealed that she had paid US$1,600 to be transported to Jamaica.

With our planned chat with one of the newly found entertainment divas discouraged by the presence of a 300-pound muscle man, the news team left for Kingston.



One of the Haitian dancers claimed she was a schoolteacher. She also revealed that she had paid US$1,600 to be transported to Jamaica.