Tourism and exploitation
During the last week of my organizational communications class, we did a focus group for the prof on the hospitality industry in New Orleans and how we perceive it. He was especially interested in the accounts of people who had worked in the industry.
One of the women in my class talked about her experience working as a hostess at a jazz club last summer. The Essence Festival is a big event held in New Orleans every July, and attracts a lot of African-American visitors to the community. This club was a predominantly white club, but they wanted to capture some of that audience. The manager saw my classmate and her roommate walking outside, and asked if they would be interested in working that weekend.
On the upside, the young women made some pretty serious money: $600 each in tips for a weekend's work. It was easy money, too. And they didn't need to do anything immoral or unethical; they just needed to sell drinks and be friendly.
On the downside...well, I have so many issues with this maybe I'm not able to be unbiased. The bottom line is exploitation. These girls were hired based on their looks and their race to make money for the club, and even though they made money, too, it was probably a spit in the bucket compared to what the club raked in. They had to put up with strange men (who had usually been drinking) hugging them, touching them and otherwise hitting on them. They needed to be escorted to their car when the evening was over, because the nature of the work left them especially vulnerable to assault.
My classmate said that in the end, while the money was really easy, she didn't like it at all and wouldn't do it again.
My opinion, in the end, is that any city that expects to build its economy on sex, drugs, and rock and roll doesn't have much of a future.
I'm reminded of what I read about the early days of "The Apprentice" last year, when the women traded on their sex appeal to win the early contests. Who was the last person standing? Not a woman, but a guy. A serious guy, who worked hard and knew his stuff. And didn't have to show any T&A to get where he was going.
One of the women in my class talked about her experience working as a hostess at a jazz club last summer. The Essence Festival is a big event held in New Orleans every July, and attracts a lot of African-American visitors to the community. This club was a predominantly white club, but they wanted to capture some of that audience. The manager saw my classmate and her roommate walking outside, and asked if they would be interested in working that weekend.
On the upside, the young women made some pretty serious money: $600 each in tips for a weekend's work. It was easy money, too. And they didn't need to do anything immoral or unethical; they just needed to sell drinks and be friendly.
On the downside...well, I have so many issues with this maybe I'm not able to be unbiased. The bottom line is exploitation. These girls were hired based on their looks and their race to make money for the club, and even though they made money, too, it was probably a spit in the bucket compared to what the club raked in. They had to put up with strange men (who had usually been drinking) hugging them, touching them and otherwise hitting on them. They needed to be escorted to their car when the evening was over, because the nature of the work left them especially vulnerable to assault.
My classmate said that in the end, while the money was really easy, she didn't like it at all and wouldn't do it again.
My opinion, in the end, is that any city that expects to build its economy on sex, drugs, and rock and roll doesn't have much of a future.
I'm reminded of what I read about the early days of "The Apprentice" last year, when the women traded on their sex appeal to win the early contests. Who was the last person standing? Not a woman, but a guy. A serious guy, who worked hard and knew his stuff. And didn't have to show any T&A to get where he was going.
3 Comments:
Well, I guess since Vegas adds gambling to that mix we should be OK. (or maybe just a little further down?)
Yes, they did. They knew what they were getting into, and it was their choice.
But my concern is that the raison d'etre of Louisiana tourism is to give people a place to go where they can behave in ways that they never would at home. Sort of a low-level version of the child sex tours in Thailand. Building an economy based on exploitation is not good for the people who need to stay here! It contributes to an atmosphere of "anything goes," which is bad for the overall standard of living.
I compeletly agree with you about our fair city's shaky reliance on the "hospitality" industry. Whenever there's a big downturn, this city will get hammered.
Also, I've always resented the notion that people can come here and do whatever the heck they want. That's no surprise, as the powers that be have always looked the other way. I'm no prude, but decent people do live here.
One year (back when I lived on a parade route) I had enough and shouted out my car window for Mardi Gras visitors to go home and give us the city back. My passenger was laughing out loud, and no doubt the tourists thought me unbelievably rude.
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