TAXI DANCERS

Martin Booe’s article offended and disturbed me. I have been a dance hostess at Club Flamingo for the past 10 months. From my own experience, the majority of the girls are not “desperate,” do not “force blissful smiles,” wear “cheap perfume” or have “sad stories.” And his depiction of “girls, 70 or 80 of them . . . hoping you will take them away from all this” was ridiculous. There may be a few girls hoping, but only a few. Either these girls stood out to Booe, or he was purposely looking for them to make his story more colorful.

Some of the girls who work in Club Flamingo do have hard-luck stories, but there are many other girls with happy, successful lives. There are the students: the anthropology major who just came back from India, the journalism major who has never worn a tight miniskirt to the club, the nursing students and so on. There are some, like myself, who have four-year degrees. Some are pursuing further education. Some use this as a second job. Of the happily married women who work in the club, one woman invests her money in stocks and bonds.

Booe’s article equally misrepresented the men who frequent Club Flamingo. Most I’ve danced with have been professionals, nice, funny and friendly. The men spend their evenings with a girl, no strings attached, no pressures, no “pick-up bar” scene.

LISA BILSKI

Los Angeles