American Courtesans

>> Prostitutes have to be very

clear what they are--

wild clothes, insy-binsy shorts,

go-go boots.

>> That's not moral. I wouldn't

want my daughter doing that.

You wouldn't want your mom doing

it. You wouldn't want your

sister doing that.

>> They are not educated.

They might be on drugs. I can't

believe anyone chooses that.

>> My mom is an escort. My own

belief is sexually you should

only be with one person.

>> It really hurt me bad,

but it woke me up.

>> Oh.

>> He's got the trunk open.

>> He's gonna put you

in there?

>> When women in prostitution

were murdered, the police called

them NHIs, "no humans involved."

>> Why should it stay illegal?

>> Because it's illegal.

>> My name is Kristen DiAngelo,

and I've been in the adult

industry 35 years.

>> 35 years.

>> I can't exactly remember

the number of times I've been

beaten or raped, the number of

times I've had a knife held to

my throat or a gun to my head,

held hostage for periods

of time. I've jumped out of

windows. I worked the rough ends

of this area in early years.

The streets are really rough.

I decided to make this film

because I not only survived,

I was lucky enough to flourish.

And identify yourself.

>> OK, my name is Gina DePalma.

I've been a sex worker since--

Hmm. Well, since I was 13.

My parents competed with

the Joneses. Everything was very

copacetic and proper.

>> Tamsen Crown. I've been

in the adult industry for

13 years. Born out of wedlock to

a young woman, a very religious

type of family. I do not know

who my father is. My mother

remarried. Right before I turned

12, my mother had a child with

him, so it was shortly after

that I was sent to go live with

my grandmother.

>> And they sent you away?

>> It is what it is.

>> OK.

>> My name is Pearl Callahan,

and I've been working for

about--probably in the industry

about 38 years.

>> And you just retired.

>> Yep.

>> On the outside, my family

looked pretty normal, and it

probably was.

>> Yeah.

>> From a very early age,

there was somebody who had what

I call a hands-on problem.

>> Mm-hmm.

>> It did a lot to form my ideas

of who I was and the power and

control that I had about men.

I had something that men wanted.

Whatever this thing was, it was

a powerful enough thing to make

good men do bad things.

>> My mother used to say I was

a 40-year-old 9-year-old.

She basically told me I had

everything, the pool in the

backyard, the TV in my room

because--I don't want to say it.

How do I say it? She sucked

my dad's dick for it.

>> Yeah.

>> So, I guess, at that age,

I thought, OK, this is what you

gotta do.

>> There were a total of 9 kids

in the family. My mother left

my father. We had to take on

the responsibility of taking

care of the house and things,

because, you know, he was out

working and trying to provide

for us. He did the best he

could, but, you know, we just

never had enough. You know,

you just run out of stuff.

There's just too much month, OK,

more month than money. He was

a farm boy, a clerk, also was

a custodian, a janitor. On the

side, he would mow lawns and

stuff like that, anything that

he could do to make money. Most

people have a backyard to play

in, right? Well, no, for him,

he saw that as ground. He just

tilled up the whole backyard,

and we had a fantastic garden.

>> During integration, when they

rezoned, I, all of a sudden,

was dropped into probably

the not best neighborhood

in the world.

>> Mm-mmm.

>> It's where I met my first

pimps. It's where I fir--met my

first working girls. I learned

about drugs there, and I learned

a lot about survival.

>> I don't want to cry. This is

the hard part.

>> I know. The early years is

the horrible part.

>> The early part is rough.

She was really physically

abusive--guns and knives and,

you know, scary. The only person

in my life I was ever scared of

was my mother. I'm out on the

streets, and nothing bothers me.

But if, you know, I was to think

I had to go back home,

it was like, overwhelming.

>> Erin Marxxx, and I've been

an escort for 7 years. I lived

with my dad and my stepmother

and my 4 sisters, and we lived

on a houseboat, no plumbing,

no water, no electricity.

We bathed in the river. Our food

came from the river. My dad did

what he could for us. He was

a construction worker. It's the

reason why I work as hard as I

do, because I don't want to ever

not have money. But--Excuse me.

I'm gonna mess up my makeup.

>> It's OK.

>> My dad was good to us. He did

what he could, but, you know,

it's hard, and none--and I don't

do this because of my father or

because we were poor. I do it

because I love my body. I like

the way I look. I can make money

with it. But, you know, my work

ethic is not like most people,

who have--get everything handed

to them. I work as hard as I can

to get where I am now, so--

Can we stop? I don't--I don't

want to be crying on the camera.

>> You know what? It's OK.

It really is.

>> I hate talking about

my family. I want to change

the subject.

>> Look up.

>> I mean, I started working

when I was 14, just 'cause

I wanted to have school clothes

to go to school with. When, you

know, the first day of school

starts and you want all of the

things that everybody else is

gonna have. But my sisters never

did that, and I usually ended up

having to buy them stuff, 'cause

they never went to work. They've

never really wanted to do--

have a job.

>> Like we--Right now?

Mm-hmm. Right now.

>> My name is Skylar Cruz,

and I've been an escort

for 5 years.

>> Your mother met

your father where?