In this third (and possibly final, dending on the comments/responses I get as to whether you would like 1 more blog post about this, or have other suggestions for topics you would like to hear about), I will compare & contrast the correlations and distinctions I see between the growing socio-economic divide between the upper & working class in America, and the decreasing prevalence of what was once the reality for the majority of Americans-the middle class.
The emergence of a large middle class was a phenomena sparked in large part by the industrial revolution.
As the economy, both local, national, and global, begins to settle itself back into our new normal, the scope of the effects of pandemic remain further reaching than I believe any of us would have deemed possible before the start of it all. The previously incomprehensible, and as yet incalculable, changes that the worldwide spread of the Covid 19 virus have brought are so far-reaching that I believe we have not yet even begun to understand the long-term & expansive consequences of it. Whether they will be mainly positive or mainly negative changes is yet to be seen, and, in my opinion, will likely be determined by where you stand on the political spectrum. The middle class as the main component of US, as well as capitalist-based economies worldwide, came into being due mainly to industrialization. With the emergence of factories, steady income both fed by & based on supply and demand rather than the previous more agricultural lifestyle dependent upon the seasons, etc...in which humanity had existed for over the previous 10,000 years, and an increase in leisure time as well as the emergence of many things such as electricity becoming more and more common place, both the free time which people had available & the ease of access to commodities previously unavailable or available only to the exclusive elite, gave each passing generation a strong desire to improve the social, financial, and educational opportunities available to their children.
I have noticed a significant reduction in the previously robust & sizeable middle class in America-both in terms of the number of people who consider themselves a part of it (whether "lower-middle", middle, or "upper-middle" class, as well as their contribution to & therefore power in the economy. It seems more & more that we are returning to a system of the rich & the poor, of "haves" & "have nots" with no middle ground in between. In fact, in 2021, according to Pew Research Center. only 50% of American adults reported considering themselves "middle class", a sizeable decrease from the first time this study was conducted, when 61% considered themselves to be a part of the "middle class". This 11% drop is a very significant number of people who in America who feel they have transitioned out of the middle class. There was also an 4% increase in those who considered themselves lower/working class.
Personally, in my line of work, I have seen this reality permeate the industry and have a marked effect on it as a whole. Mid-range clients have always been my bread & butter, starting in the days of backpage where all you had to do was post a catchy title with a couple emojis, throw in a few pictures, add your Google Voice phone number, and messages from literally hundreds of interested potential clients would come pouring in within the first half hour. In the 100-400 per hour range, you could find a nearly endless supply of attractive escort options to fit any personal preference you can imagine, and on the other side of things, a wide array of clients to choose from with very little if any "ghosting", "scams", etc...concerns being brought up by either clients or sex workers (although I do believe Backpage started the "gift card scams"; but that is a story for another day AND a different article).
While of course a vast array of changes have affected the industry in recent years, none have done so more drastically with regards to long-term & far-reaching affects, than Covid and the ensuing shifts have done. While at the bottom of the "Whorearchy Ladder", you can still drive down Lake Street & find a girl who will take you "around the world" (or $7, depending on how lucky/unlucky you are, according to one long-time aquaintance of mine), and at the top you can still go on Eros & find ex-playboy models who look like Victoria's Secret Angels, and start at $120o an hour with a 4 hour minimum, only offer FMTY (see blog post "List of Common Terms & Acronyms), oar, like an expensive jewelry store, simply do not list their donations at all (I assume this is an "if you have to ask, you probably can't afford it" type of scenario), it has become increasingly difficult to find mid-range sex workers.
Adult Look has all but died, limping along on its stump of a last leg, Megapersonals (imo the "lower-middle class" options for the masses of Backpage Refugees has been overrun by scammers, Skip the Games actually completely stopped accepting new provider profiles for close to a year due to the massive amounts of hackers & the ensuing scams & deposit rip-offs, and my personal favorite mid-range site, Tryst, has recently nearly doubled the cost to providers of their Premium package, as well as added a 4th yet more expensive option to sex workers costing approxh $200 per month-so; is it any wonder that even there, most providers have jacked their prices up to around $500 plus per hour, and eliminated options for clients on a tighter budget, such as half-hour & quick-visit appointments.
As the number of Americans who consider themselves middle class decreases, so does the number of people who can support themselves off the industries catering to the middle class, and the portions of the Sex Work Industry which catered to them, in particular. With everyone spending more time at home, unless you are comfortable with a car date, or have a vacation home or condo in the city, etc...(or maybe a private island? If you do, PLEASE invite me lolol...) it is also becoming more & more difficult to get a private moment away from family & friends in order to indulge in any type of adult fun in-person.
So, as with every other industry that possibly could, in order to cut costs, serve a wider audience, and maintain income with a dwindling clientele base, most if not all mid-range escorts have found it necessary to incorporate virtual services into their work more & more frequently, with many, especially at the height of the pandemic, switching to offer online options exclusively. As mentioned in previous blog posts, this only heightens the alienation, isolation, and exclusion of those sex workers who many not have access to electronics & find it difficult if not impossible to stay both afloat AND safe in an increasingly technology-driven industry. Heightening stigma only serves to reduce access to services, such as STD testing, which makes an already extremely high risk area of the field, increasingly dangerous for both clients & sex workers alike. On the opposite end of the spectrum, some high-end escorts are frustrated by what had been until recently almost exclusively "their" territory-websites, video chats, texting packages, virtual dates, electronic video & picture sales, traceable financial transactions, accepting credit & debit cards, and paying taxes...which leads to an aura of exclusivity & secrecy not at all conducive to an environment of safety, especially with regards to things like client references & referrals.
Overall, I do not believe that we will be able to ascertain what the effects on the pandemic will be long-term on society as a whole, nor on the adult industry in particular, for quite some time. Whether they will be mostly positive or mostly negative, from my personal perspective, still remains to be seen. Perhaps soon, there will be no flesh-and-blood sex workers at all & everyone will just rent sex robots (or buy their own, if they can afford one ;] ). But for the time being, only one thing is certain-sex work is moving online, right along with just about every other aspect of our lives-and I don't think there's any restart button for that!
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