The day my Friend's Cousin got Trafficked
The day my Friend's Cousin got Traffic
By Red Bottoms
Today’s tale is about Sally O’Malley’s Brazilian friend, Cindy. Well, more correctly about Cindy’s cousin from back home in Brazil. But, let’s start at the beginning.
Cindy was a knockout, and she and Sally used to dance together at the strip club, driving the boys crazy. Sally told her about the great money she was making as an independent sex worker and invited Cindy to give it a try. Surprisingly, Cindy said she couldn’t do that, that it just wasn’t right for her. Sally respected her answer, but then, without any prodding from Sally, she told her why. It’s a tale of a monstrous crime and a warm-hearted Italian rescue.
Back in Brazil
Cindy’s cousin came from a small town in Brazil, and the tale begins with the arrival of a group of men who came to town and let it be known that a cruise ship, kinda like Carnival Cruise, was looking to hire staff. Now, like most small-town girls the world over, Cindy’s cousin yearned to see the greater world, and she was easy prey. Of course, they hired her, and they gave her plane tickets that were to bring her to the cruise ship’s port. You can probably guess what happened next.
The Beginning of Cindy’s Cousin’s Nightmare
The actual destination was an apartment where she found herself a prisoner of sex traffickers who threatened to beat her if she resisted their demands. For over two years, she was forced to have sex multiple times each day. Not being able to speak the local language, she couldn’t even speak to the men she was forced to service, which only compounded her misery and isolation.
Cindy’s Cousin’s Italian Rescue
Then one day, an Italian client came in. Now, the Italian language is somewhat similar to Portuguese, and she was able to convey her desperation to this kindly man, and he decided to help. Sorry, no action/adventure sequence here, our big hearted Italian merely approached the human scum and simply offered to buy her freedom. A price was agreed on, and she was free. And yes all you hopeless romantics, the two fell in love! They lived happily together in Europe for a couple years, but then Cindy’s cousin decided to, finally, return home to Brazil.
The Lasting Effect that her Cousin’s Ordeal had on Cindy
The terrible experience that her cousin endured had cast a pale over the idea of Cindy embracing a career as a sex worker. This was in spite of the fact that under Sally’s guidance, there was no real chance of anything so terrible happening to her.
But also, at heart, Cindy was a good Catholic girl. While dancing at a strip club was stretching it, sex work itself was something she couldn’t embrace. Of course, Sally respected her decision, and they remained fast friends.
Sally’s Thoughts on the Matter
Sally loves her line of work, and she feels lucky that nothing like that has ever happened to her. But, as she points out, she speaks the language and she can set her own boundaries. She doesn’t have a boss, she can also set her own prices. But most of all, she doesn't have to do things she’s uncomfortable doing. And most importantly, Sally’s not desperate for money and she has all the power she needs to control the situation and to stay safe.
About Consent
As Sally describes it, sex work isn’t cut and dry; there’s lots of gray areas and there's different levels of consent. You might have a house full of kids to feed, clothe and take care of. You might not want to go on in sex work, but when baby cries momma must buy, so on you go, even though you don’t really want to. So, technically you’ve consented, but it is, in the end consent under duress.
Hey! All you Clients out There
If you have sex with a sex worker and she doesn't speak the language, how do you know if she's consenting or not? And, yet in another one of those gray areas we cautioned about earlier, even if she doesn’t speak English, she still might be going into this with her eyes open, and simply wants to make money in a way that’s easy and acceptable to her.
Life is never simple!