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Posted
Thursday, March 13, 2008 1:25 PM
| By
Rachael Larimore
Hanna,
Your post about Ashley Dupré has me wondering whether her story gives lie to some of the arguments made for legal but well-regulated prostitution. Isn't the ideal version of legalized prostitution something like the Emperors' Club? An agency that handles booking and vets "clients" seems far less dangerous than street pimps who abuse their prostitutes and send them into potentially dangerous situations, right? Makes it seem more like a career choice and less an act of desperation. But then we see that Ms. Dupré is worried about making her rent payments and considering returning to the family that she described as "broken" and that inspired her to strike out on her own as a teenager. As the Spitzer scandal has played out, we've seen outrageous sums of money thrown about: $4,300 for the infamous session at the Mayflower, the $80,000 that Gov. Spitzer may have spent with the club overall, etc. But I have yet to see a breakdown. How much do the escorts keep from their fees? Does the agency's cut go toward testing for STDs or toward health care for the women? How much better off are they than a typical street hooker?
I don't have strong feelings one way or the other about the legalization issue. But as we learn more about the Emperors' Club and "Kristen"/Ashley, it seems like even this upscale version of the world's oldest profession thrives by taking advantage of women who are vulnerable or have suffered misfortune, and that that should be taken into consideration before we rush to make this a legitimate profession.
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