I noticed that 2 girls were fined for 'defacing' a poster promoting Spearmint Rhino, which reminded me of a another poster incident last year, when Rhino were given a good spanking by the ASA for a 'Back to School' poster.
Even at 4am, as I sat in a smelly cab on my way home from my stripclub, it made me think - as a dancer, I want all the promotion for lapdancing clubs, their nights, prices, and how cool they are, as the industry can get. It gets customers in through the door after all. But is at a price of offending the general public, and is it promoting distasteful attitudes and morals?
Even at 4am, as I sat in a smelly cab on my way home from my stripclub, it made me think - as a dancer, I want all the promotion for lapdancing clubs, their nights, prices, and how cool they are, as the industry can get. It gets customers in through the door after all. But is at a price of offending the general public, and is it promoting distasteful attitudes and morals?
Now, I don't know how I feel about the back 2 school poster, as I have a schoolgirl outfit myself and do very well in it, thankyou. I also really like Spearmint Rhino - as a club, there are lots of fairly friendly girls, the bouncers and management are, well, they are never going to be friendly, as men who work in stripclubs almost always have an attitude problem, but they do have listening abilities and say hello, and don't sleep or pressurise the girls that I have heard of, so as stripclubs go, its not that bad....
But advertising a sexy schoolgirl night? It's an ad-campaign that will work, and get punters through the door, because the sexualisation of schoolgirls happens at club nights and fancy dress parties all over the country. But I agree with the ASA on this one - schoolgirls shouldn't be associated with the promotional material for mainstream stripclubs, that have massive posterboards spread all over the world.
In the other story, the poor two girls were CAUGHT MID-ACT (oh, honey, can't you be more of a street-smart feminist?) and fined £80 for scrawling 'WOMEN ARE NOT OBJECTS' on the posters advertising a new Leicester stripclub (again Spearmint Rhino). Whilst this story was incredibly funny during my 4am journey home, I feel proud that there are still female activists out there that feel that lapdancing is a dehumanising industry, because, in sooooo many ways, it really is.
I was a lapdancing activist last year, when a whole host of club management and strippers protested against new Government legislation that classified lapdancers as 'sex-workers'. Waving a placard around and shouting slogans was great fun, and so my hat goes off to anyone who makes a stand - whether its for my industry or against it.
Just don't stop any punters walking through the doors, ok?
The schoolgirl poster is one I definately recognise, and you can read about the story on my favourite Sunday paper, the Guardian's website here; http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/nov/10/spearmint-rhino-poster-asa
The graffitied poster can be found on the good ol' Beeb website; http://cdnedge.bbc.co.uk/local/leicester/hi/people_and_places/newsid_9357000/9357750.stm
P.S. I always get worried when I provide direct links to websites, so if I have done an internet boo-boo please leave a comment and i will sharpen up my manners....
1 comment:
not my finest blog post i must admit, however I must admit I am partial to the same as you, especially under influence. but you strike me as someone with a personality, or at least experience, to probably be a bit more in control of your emotions and LESS likely to be led down the garden path by lechy, boys that lurk around the clubs... What I find is talking to a lot of girls who haven't had much life experience before uni and who aren't getting their kicks from these one night stands. which is a shame.. I think it's not simply about a free drink, but discovering their sexual satisfaction and pursuing it! when the option is, bad sex, or a good cup of tea/facial/whatever, I would invariably choose tea... it's such a shame when people choose the former.
London Girl Up North
Post a Comment