Portrait of a Life in Prostitution
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In 2007 Daphne* was walking along 13th Ave West. A truck circled the block for the second time. She could tell by the man’s body language that he was looking for a date. She gave the man a wave and signaled him into an alley where no one would see them.
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She hopped in and asked if he was a cop. To prove it she put her hands down his pants and told him to do the same to her--something a police officer would never do.
The price was $80 for whatever the man wanted.
Today there are girls who will go as low as $10. It has created what she calls a “prostitution war,” by flooding the market with lower prices. It also makes Johns more demanding on the high priced women to give in and lower their costs.
“And if they don’t they more or less beat you and take you where they want,” said Daphne.
There is no shortage of girls to choose from either.
Driving around the city in the Prince Albert Outreach van, Angela Di Paolo sees as many as 40 women selling sex every day.
She said the numbers are highest in the summer, especially during the large events.
They are active all day from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Few come out at night since Johns often go home to their families.
The price was $80 for whatever the man wanted.
Today there are girls who will go as low as $10. It has created what she calls a “prostitution war,” by flooding the market with lower prices. It also makes Johns more demanding on the high priced women to give in and lower their costs.
“And if they don’t they more or less beat you and take you where they want,” said Daphne.
There is no shortage of girls to choose from either.
Driving around the city in the Prince Albert Outreach van, Angela Di Paolo sees as many as 40 women selling sex every day.
She said the numbers are highest in the summer, especially during the large events.
They are active all day from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Few come out at night since Johns often go home to their families.
Daphne spent many hours walking up and down 13th Street West looking for Johns. It happens on the street every day.
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The girls work in different locations. Daphne could make lots of money on 13th Street. Or she would hook by River Street and First Avenue West. It was close to her home on Central Ave. where her family members could keep an eye on her.
She could also work on the higher end in casinos. She would dress classier, wear high-heeled shoes, and doll-up her makeup. |
“The casino, how it works, you’re going in and you only have $5. And you play the slots and you walk around and you can just pick up men in there like the drop of the hat.”
“And the people who are in that business are easier to mark because they’re drunk...
“You take them from there and you go into the hotel rooms...
“Or you just take them there, and say, you don’t want to be seen in their car or they don’t want you to go into the car so they get a cab.”
From there it was close to pick up beer. They could stay in the commercial setting, find a hotel, and have their drug dealers and friends to come meet them.
One place she would never go is around schools, playgrounds, and public parks. She said she doesn’t want to attract Johns to those places.
“We try to take our services away from school zones because there’s a lot of pedophiles,” she said.
“We as mothers know that that’s somebody else’s kid and it’s just something if you’re a working girl you know to not come or even attempt to get into a guy’s car in or around a park...
“Even though we’re drug addicts, we have morals because we’re all somebody’s mom, sister, and grandma, auntie.”
When guys did pick her up she would always make sure her needs were met including being fed. Fast food restaurants were one of her main stops before she would have sex with someone.
Different measures often had to be taken to find drug money.
“Everything, yes, to get money for my drug habit,” she said. “And that was even if I had to go smack around another prostitute to get my drug of choice before theirs.”
For acting as the girl’s pimp, Daphne was charged with living off the avails of prostitution.
For easy access to drugs Daphne said it was good to remain friendly with taxi drivers. They could also find her clients.
“I know a few taxi drivers who have guy friends that need a date, that’s what they would say...
“They would hook me up with a guy and they would be like the middle man,” she said.
Work for prostitutes is constant, even when women are menstruating. Those days she would either perform oral sex in the car, or rip him off by taking the money up front and running out of the car at a red light, though she said it was something she didn't like to do.
That's because it was beneficial to build a rapport with some Johns. She would ask them if they needed another girl. She would then hook them up with a prostitute who she knew wouldn’t rip them off. That way they would trust her and become a returning customer.
When Daphne woke up in the mornings she would take a walk. It got her motivated to go out.
Those days she might turn tricks and shoot up multiple times.
On a typical day, she and her peers would group together, selling drugs and hooking.
“And that’s how we did. That was my life, a prostitute in PA.”
“And the people who are in that business are easier to mark because they’re drunk...
“You take them from there and you go into the hotel rooms...
“Or you just take them there, and say, you don’t want to be seen in their car or they don’t want you to go into the car so they get a cab.”
From there it was close to pick up beer. They could stay in the commercial setting, find a hotel, and have their drug dealers and friends to come meet them.
One place she would never go is around schools, playgrounds, and public parks. She said she doesn’t want to attract Johns to those places.
“We try to take our services away from school zones because there’s a lot of pedophiles,” she said.
“We as mothers know that that’s somebody else’s kid and it’s just something if you’re a working girl you know to not come or even attempt to get into a guy’s car in or around a park...
“Even though we’re drug addicts, we have morals because we’re all somebody’s mom, sister, and grandma, auntie.”
When guys did pick her up she would always make sure her needs were met including being fed. Fast food restaurants were one of her main stops before she would have sex with someone.
Different measures often had to be taken to find drug money.
“Everything, yes, to get money for my drug habit,” she said. “And that was even if I had to go smack around another prostitute to get my drug of choice before theirs.”
For acting as the girl’s pimp, Daphne was charged with living off the avails of prostitution.
For easy access to drugs Daphne said it was good to remain friendly with taxi drivers. They could also find her clients.
“I know a few taxi drivers who have guy friends that need a date, that’s what they would say...
“They would hook me up with a guy and they would be like the middle man,” she said.
Work for prostitutes is constant, even when women are menstruating. Those days she would either perform oral sex in the car, or rip him off by taking the money up front and running out of the car at a red light, though she said it was something she didn't like to do.
That's because it was beneficial to build a rapport with some Johns. She would ask them if they needed another girl. She would then hook them up with a prostitute who she knew wouldn’t rip them off. That way they would trust her and become a returning customer.
When Daphne woke up in the mornings she would take a walk. It got her motivated to go out.
Those days she might turn tricks and shoot up multiple times.
On a typical day, she and her peers would group together, selling drugs and hooking.
“And that’s how we did. That was my life, a prostitute in PA.”