413047-Underground-Commercial-Sex-Economy

Again, respondents indicated that telling women they were “already doing it for free” was particularly
influential with women who were in economically vulnerable situations.
Appeal of Associated Lifestyle
Some pimps felt that prominently demonstrating their wealth was key to recruiting women into the
UCSE. A respondent noted, “Well I had $10,000 worth of jewelry on, I mean, people get excited. I was
driving a Lexus, they liked that” (A3). In some circumstances, pimps were able to offer women a greater
degree of comfort; one pimp believed that “mostly the girls come from low-income housing. You start
talking about money, always sparks interest and curiosity” (C4). Another pimp was able to recruit women
by “offering them a better living and better living conditions” (E2).
The perception of wealth was also a selling point for women already engaged in prostitution. Pimps
competed with one another to promise individuals greater living comfort, whether or not they could
deliver:
When you see a girl on the track and you want her, you send your bottom girl to recruit
her and ask, “How you livin’ over there” Some pimps live in hotels, some in mansion.
You can say, “Hey, you staying in a hotel right now I can stay you in a house.” You move
up in ranks by having more than the next dude or at least a better game. (D5)
Speaking from a similar perspective, another respondent compared recruitment to political campaigning:
We are all competitors against each other, what we are doing is campaigning. How I wear
my jewelry, nice clothes. You bring your bitch around, I might not be talking to her, but
you’re talking to [her pimp] and you’re campaigning to get to her. You really are not going
to put your female in a position for your partners; we’re all each other’s competition. (B3)
Another pimp believed that while some younger women start prostituting for someone their own age
(such as a fellow high school student), they later seek out a pimp who can offer a more desirable lifestyle:
There is someone in that high school with them that says, “Look, let’s do this.” The guy
might not be able to keep up with the girl, she learns the ropes and decides she doesn’t
want to be with him. When you’re young, you want to party, smoke, and drink. She
decides he is messing up her money. They know how much they make, it’s not like they’re
giving it up and don’t know. I had girls tally up the money and then ask where the money
is: “You broke Why do I continue to give you money and we have nothing to show for it”
She run across somebody who is in [a better] position, nice car, he got other girls. He
might be older. She might be 16 or 17, he’s 21. He might have an apartment. His girl is out
there with him, she meets her, decide that’s where she wants to be. (E3)
Pimps routinely used the promise of a better life to compel women to engage in sex work under their
management. As a result, public displays of wealth were a common recruitment tactic shared by
respondents.
Reputation
I never had to recruit. When your name is on the streets, people know your reputation
and people contact you. If you have some kind of business and they want a job, they
contact you. (D5)
In many cases, pimps believed that their reputation as a good pimp was the primary source of attraction
to new employees. One respondent explained, “Girls would prostitute out of their houses and knew it
wasn’t a good thing to do. They knew I was a family guy, I wouldn’t mess with them. I would do security
and say, ‘If you touch them in the wrong way, you will have me on top of you’” (F6). A female pimp
discussed how her reputation attracted employees:
I was a good pimp. Ladies are attracted to a good pimp. I wasn’t abusive, I wanted
something out of life. They could gain some of the things they didn’t have by making fast
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