When I first applied for a job in the adult entertainment industry, I was two states and hundreds of miles away from my hometown. As I sat there, waiting to be interviewed, one of my sisters childhood athletic coaches walked in. Once hired, seeing men I recognized from outside the club as customers was not uncommon. From fellow university students to the owner of the restaurant where I also worked as a server, I had discovered a secret male world.

Even though women were the foundation of the entertainment, everyone in charge of the music, the drinks, the doors, the schedule, the money was a man. The women danced or cleaned and waited tables. The door to the womens dressing room was either missing or left open, and if customers angled themselves opportunistically, they could see into the only bathroom stall, which never had a door.

Even though men were in charge, without women, there would be no money coming in the doors. However, the men treated women as expendable. If they fired someone, it didnt matter. More than once I walked out. I remember a manager yelling, Youll be back!