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A term known as being a ‘sex worker,’ is loosely referred to those engaging in prostitution. However, in the modern age, sex work that does include pornographic content and literature is considered to be associated in the field, and even questioned. Sex work is a term to describe a wide range of activities relating to the exchange of money for the provision of sexual service in return. A sex worker is labelled in two categories, from indirect and direct sex work, referring to indirect sex work that involves lap dancing, stripping and or virtual sex; whereas direct sex is self-explanatory and has the inclusion of sexual acts in person. Scambler, 2007, describes women as the prominent figure in sex work, estimating women to dominant the field by 85-90 percent. For multiple reasons, the sex industry is current in today’s current socioeconomic climate. A small amount of sex workers includes those who engage in such acts to fund their studies, defying the stance that sex workers originate from lower social economic backgrounds. It is, however, apparent that those who engage in the sex industry whilst in university often experience exclusion and or discrimination and continue onto a separate path other than their initial involvement in the industry. Despite the frequent occurrences of discrimination and stigma attached to the sex industry, a report study involving four individuals has been studied, questioning their personal involvement and or experience surrounding the sex industry. As viewed in the commentary received from each individual, westernised sex involvement in return for money has shifted into positivity, and independence, regardless of expected treatment. Discrimination against those in the sex industry are included in many forms, such as; racism, stigmatisation and prejudice. These forms of discrimination can be the primary cause of isolation, loneliness and suicide in the case of individuals partaking in sex work, especially for individuals that are labelled as outcasts within the community and or immigrants. The cyclical involvement in the sex industry can cause an individual to be experience difficulties in finding employment in other fields, however, Los Santos’ perspective differs in multiple ways. Juliet, Arden and Carmen are three women that are associated with the sex industry field. Juliet is an owner of an adult company, whereas Arden is a prior sex worker, and Carmen is a virtual sex worker and stripper. All women share similar experiences, however, differ in perspective in the following report. The final questioned individual, named JJ Ras, has a culturally differentiated answer, to provide further narrative from the affairs women could pursue whilst in the sex industry. Juliet Dylan The brand-owner of the upcoming adult company known as ‘PlayHouse Entertainment,’ Juliet Dylan’s self-described ‘adult company’ has made subtle ripples among other businesses during its production. As a female sex industry business owner, Juliet’s narrative adds a separate perspective to most, with her communicating about the freedom and liberation that her brand inspects through over-saturated comparisons. Q: Partaking in the adult entertainment industry, how does the community perceive you, and have you yet to have any backlash? A: ‘The general community in most cities often tends to be split between those who are far more liberal and accepting of the idea that sexuality is just another part of the human personality and those who still believe that it’s a disgusting, taboo subject that shouldn’t be publicly acknowledged. We’re relatively new to Los Santos and so far, the welcome has been overwhelmingly positive. Many who have taken the time to listen to me speak about the company and brand understand that it’s more than just the nude photo-shoot that you hide under the mattress for sake of modesty. We have of course been subject to the usual internet trolls and meme-ers but in all fairness, what relevant brand isn’t?’ Q: What are your positive and negative experiences been from having a business that revolves around the adult entertainment industry? A: ‘The sex industry has come a long way in the years that I’ve been working in it. Since I started the magazine 5 years ago the culture surrounding sexuality has evolved into something vibrant and enlightened. I try to surround myself with like-minded people and portray a product that is less about solely sex and rather embraces multiple aspects of being an adult. This usually attracts people with genuine interest or sometimes just curiosity but very few people I speak with leave without a positive experience. As to the negatives, I’ve been called everything under the sun, threatened, stalked and branded as exploiting impressionable woman. It’s a symptom of those who still see sex as something shameful rather than simply another facet of the human condition. It’s a strange thought that we freely use things such as our humor, intelligence and charisma to get ahead in business but to employ something like sexuality is still seen as tawdry.’ Q: Your business, ‘Playhouse Entertainment,’ has started production and is expanding past the regions of precaution that Los Santos has seen for adult entertainment businesses. What are some of the precautions that is undergone for your models? A: ‘One of the things that sets PlayHouse apart from many webzines and blogs is the interaction between our representatives and our subscribers. The community business model is not a new concept. We’re here to create some sensationalism around our representatives, that’s the business. Take twitch for example, it pairs internet personalities with their audience in real time streams. PlayHouse offers a barrier beyond just the computer screen by having polls and subscriber content moderated by the company. There is no direct contact through the website with the models. We also don’t publish our models contacts info, last names and the like. As to Events, there are always precautions taken in the form of security on premises.’ Q: Finally, do you have any further information about your business for the article? What concept are you planning to delve into for your business? What does Los Santos have to prepare to see from ‘Playhouse Entertainment’? A: ‘PlayHouse entertainment is at the very essence a community. It’s there to offer entertainment in the form of interactive web content and events. We want people to have fun with a side of provocative titillation. Why? Because it’s something very natural, very adult and not as freely offered as it should be. In short, Los Santos can expect a good tease for those who want it. ‘ Photo Credit: Arden Arden Known as a prior sex worker, Arden’s perspective as an independent porn actor furthers the narrative of an independent woman in the work industry; control, freedom and emphasising on Juliet’s statements in the initial questioning. Arden’s perspective is narrated in the following section as prominently positive, with the inclusion of tips for beginners in the industry, and her personalised experience as being a sex industry worker. Q: As a known sex worker, how has your experience been in the field thus far? A: ‘Yes, that's correct. Only I was a more "independent" porn actor, I started my career just like other independent porn actors by opening a account on Pornhub.com and Freeones.com. My alias was "Lady Havoc", me as a independent amateur pornstar went from country to country to meet up with other independent actors and that's where we shoot the videos, sometimes I did stuff with fans also. And that's how I got ball rolling really, do porn, post it on the pages, gain a following on Bleeter, FaceBrowser and of course, both Pornhub and Freeones. I was also asked to work with Burning Angel which is a porn site that's based on Female goth/punk pornstars, but I refused as I wanted to stay independent.’ Q: Have you been discriminated against for your past work in the industry? If so, how has that felt or shifted your perception on other people? A: ‘Discriminated? Never. Most people that I've met and know I was in the industry were very cool with it to be honest, they still treated me like a normal human being, my friends know that I did porn and they don't have a problem with it, they never had. I even had people coming up to me for autographs or pictures. Unlike my parents, they pretty much disowned me after they got to hear or see that I did porn, but my uncle was very cool with it, I currently live with him now.’ Q: During filming of pornography, have you felt misinformed of the situation and or not in control of yourself during the environment? A: ‘Never, not even at the beginning, the thing is, I just love having sex, it’s something I love doing, doesn't matter If it's Passionate, Hardcore, Kinbaku, BDSM, etc.’ Q: What is your opinion on the high rate of suicides in the porn industry? Do you feel as viewers encourage the attempted or successful suicides of porn actors? A: ‘Yes, I feel like some fans encourage these actions due to the simple fact that, they tend to sexualize these actors and actresses 24/7 and disconnect themselves from reality to the point where they forget that these performers have normal lives, feelings, dreams and personal lives.’ She continues, ‘My best selling/most viewed video was, "MASSIVE BBC DESTROY LADY HAVOC'S TINY HOLE" that had I done with my friend, Randall. It had over 1,5M views and 1M likes which I am very proud of.’ Arden’s best experience: ‘I'm happy how I worked with some of the actors that I've worked with, that, even when they're independent like me or work with a industry, they’re polite people that are hardworking, and make sure that the other actors or actresses feel comfortable as they work together, in other words, almost every shoot I did with actors or actresses where my best experience, there was never any hate or jealously or whatever, It felt like we're best friends even when we don’t see each other often or meet for the first time and that feeling just a great experience.’ She adds, ‘My worst experience when doing porn was when I accidentally farted from out of my vagina, It also was still early in my career and I felt completely ashamed by it, now I don't have any problems with it but back then, It was different. We both laughed it off, but I still was like, "Oh shit, that was embarrassing." Arden’s advice to porn actors: ‘It’s difficult to have any weight in the decision making when you are first starting out, When I first started out, I probably would have been more careful. Now I can say ‘no’ to the biggest studios in the world because it’s something I don’t want to do. It’s not the matter of money or exposure. It must feel right. I’m not ashamed of anything I’ve done. It’s helped make me who I am and made me a better person. People will really respect you for that.’ Photo Credit: Carmen Carmen A modern-aged technique of soliciting in exchange for money, Carmen’s experience revolves around both the sales of pornographic images and servicing herself as an employee of Vanilla Unicorn. Carmen describes herself as a ‘confident woman,’ and ‘extroverted’ on stage, defying prior expectations of her everyday persona whilst on stage and or in her own work environment. Following the statements below, Carmen's answered inquiries adds perspective to the morality individuals often forget when dealing with sex workers, due to them still being classified as regular human-beings despite their occupational duties. Q: What has your experience been as a woman selling pornographic images? Has the experience been prominently negative or positive and if so, why? A: ‘My experience has actually been pretty positive, especially from other women. Men have very positive reactions too, but those are usually in private whereas some women will publicly show their support. I think we are at a time where this line of work is getting more excepted rather than the negative stigma from the past.’ Q: Have you had any rivalries with any other women in the industry? And could you explain to us the day-to-day activities you partake in? A: ‘I don’t really have any rivals or at least I don’t think I do? I know there is another girl who sells pictures, but I fully support her regardless of her feelings for me. I do also work as a stripper, when I started Vanilla Unicorn there was one girl who really had it out for me and always tried to brag if she made more that night. For my day-to-day I don’t really have any special routines. I usually face-time my little sister back home, she’s pregnant so I like to see how she’s doing. If I have any request for pictures, I’ll try to take them in the morning before I eat to avoid bloating. And yeah.. That’s about it I guess.’ Q: What are misconceptions that individuals have about the adult entertainment industry? What is a statement that you want to tell those who are not educated? A: ‘Misconceptions? I don’t really know. I think like I said earlier about the negative stigma is one thing. The sex industry used to be a lot taboo, and more kept in the dark. As well as every woman in the industry being labelled as a “whore” or a “slut”. To those people that brand us with titles like that I guess I would say it’s time to grow up. We are making a living for ourselves just like everyone else.’ Q: How would you describe ‘Carmen’ as a person? A: ‘Carmen on stage is a strong confident woman who loves the attention when on the pole. She sometimes gets herself in sketchy predicaments, but always comes out on top. When I am on stage, I feel a new more bad ass persona come out. I’m not nearly as extroverted and confident as the Carmen at work. My brain keeps on wanting to quote from the book Lolita “Light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul.” A Jamaican citizen, JJ’s discussion of the sex industry breaches past the modernised ethics of the sex industry, and culturally does so too; with him discussing the involvement of women in the sex industry in Jamaica, including the brief inclusion in the discussion of his niece’s experience. Among sex trafficking, prostitution and cultural differentiation, the man further narrates a final haunting realisation in comparison to the modernised discussions above. JJ Ras’ experience depicts the opposite of the women’s experiences above; showcasing vulnerability and worrisome information about Jamaica's current sex work industry. Q: Earlier in our private conversation, you stated that you had personally witnessed prostitution occurring, and women being harassed and or handed down to person to person in an inhumane way. Could you explain to us your experience witnessing this? A: ‘Mi done seen erry'ting, gyal… mi gwan list one, though. One man'dem snatched a youth'dem at 'dee age a' sixteen... trainin' 'dee gyal ta' twerk in public, bleach she skin up, an' sniff 'dem lines. By 'dee age a' eighteen... she gwan be hooked ta' 'dem devilish powduh, gyal! If she nah listen, man would whip her widda' stick fa' hours on end! Mi hear she screams nex' door.... cryin' an' shit... as 'dee man'dem was beatin' her 'till she blood come out she behind! Den, when she wounds heal, he sell her fa' five-hundred per hour... yuh… jus' one story outta' 'dee whole 'ting, bredrin.’ Q: What has your nieces’ experience been in the adult entertainment industry? What are the negative and positive experiences that you have viewed first-hand whilst in Jamaica? A: ‘Nah iree... gyal done got tossed in 'dee riva' afta' she call Babylon on man'dem fa' tings... mi nah speak 'bout who... but... yuh… she talked... she got popped.... nuff said.’ Q: How would you describe Jamaica’s sex industry and adult entertainment industry? A: ‘Gyal, Jamaica done ruin theyself by fallin' ta' they slavemassas… Ya'see'meh? Man'dem gwan treat gyal like meat... wah yuh 'tink 'dem slave-massas teach we? Dat gyal nuttin' buh' second-class 'tings! Gyals taught ta' bleach up ta' impress they man, shakin' they rass all ova' 'dee place... all 'dey seen as... is dancin' sex objects... Yuh gwan hav' gyals respected by man'dem outside 'dee industry... buh, in entertainment? Jus' a sex object... nah housewife, nah doctah, nah nurse, nah strong woman! Slavery done fuck we minds up, ya'see'meh?’ Dear, reader; In consideration to the multiple perspectives provided, sex work can be labelled as liberation, despite its misconceptions and indirect encouragement of prominently negative outcomes and or emotions. The women included, and JJ, provided personal experiences with the sex industry from different perspectives and cultural divides. Noticeable divides were present in JJ's section which prominently included negative past-tense to his experience, indicating to the progression of westernised views and environments surrounding sex workers, and the safety of the environment bettering as time progresses. Lastly, as a reader, I want for you to notify me below what your personal opinion on the sex industry is below, and your personal experience. - Ezra