Last night I was flipping through the DVR recordings and an episode of the Tyra Banks show about sex workers caught my eye so I decided to watch it. I have quite an interest in the lives of sex workers, particularly the need for rights and regulation w/in the industry so I was interested to see the specifics of the episode.
The first half of the episode feature three “high-class escorts”. Each of them talked about their 5,000 sq. ft. homes, 4 day work weeks, and $150,000+ yearly incomes. One of the girls was gearing up to go into real estate; another was an artist; the third had aspirations of being a web designer. While they had their share of trials and tribulations in their pasts, all of them were doing very well with plans of leaving the industry to pursue more “acceptable” professions.
The second half of the episode took a drastically different direction. This half begins with a montage of a day in the life of 21 year old Sheena, a street prostitute. We soon learn the details of Sheena’s utterly disturbing childhood. A paranoid schizophrenic mother. Abandonment by her mother and aunt at 10. Being raped and introduced to crack at 11. By age 12 she was an addict and a vagrant. Things have remained much the same since aside from having two children from who she’s been stripped her parental rights.
At this point you’re all probably thinking, “If I wanted an episode synopsis I’d have googled it.” Ok, here’s the kicker. After hearing the girl’s life story, Tyra offers her the opportunity of her lifetime: an all-expense paid stay at the Tarzana treatment center in L.A. She also introduces her to a support group to help with her loneliness and abandonment issues. Although afraid of failing, she knows this is her chance to change. She agrees to go because she knows that if she goes back home, she’ll die.
Two hours later Sheena changes her mind. She refuses to go and returns to Chicago.
I was completely taken aback by this. How could this plan get botched? I mean sure I knew she had her reservations about being able to see the course though. Hell, I’m sure all of us watching did. But by her reaction I couldn’t have guessed she’d reject the offer. When they gave her the offer she cried and talked about getting back her children and you could see she really wanted more for herself….or maybe that was just me.
Why did she decline treatment? I think it was largely due to a lack of support. So many of us are fortunate enough to have some kind of support system that we can’t fathom not wanting to let go of something so dark for something even remotely brighter. But for Sheena only two things have remained by her side through out her tumultuous existence: prostitution and crack cocaine. The fear of turning her back on those things only to fail and have to return to them with her tail between her legs is worse than the fear of how they will further harm her.
In our constant pursuit to be a better, faster, richer people we’ve (d)evolved into an increasingly individualist society and drifted worlds away from the old “it takes a village” adage. As a result we’ve allowed so many of our brothers and sisters to fall between the cracks of social acceptance and economic stability. Our civilization is in desperate need of a return to people being responsible for one another.
So what’s the solution? For those in situations like Sheena’s, the treatment system should be set up in a manner that people don’t need to pay thousands of dollar to receive effective treatment. In addition, people who are in addictive and desperate situations shouldn’t be responsible for seeking help. Help should them out, be it from support groups, treatment center representatives, or others involved in the recovery process.
Ok, enough kumbia….more later…peace friends.
