Reading Flux Hawaii’s “From Strippers to Madams”

I recently got a hold of the Flux Hawaii magazine and flipped through the Spring 2011 Women’s Issue. I had never seen this quarterly lifestyle publication, but it’s self-described as:

the only magazine propelling an entrepreneurial generation toward positive social and creative action within our communities through a thoughtful cultivation of dialogue and a strong commitment to quality of design.

One of the articles I found interesting was “Women’s Work: From Strippers to Madams.” This article gives a “glimpse at Honolulu’s skin industry from World War II to today” and incorporates subject matter knowledge from an Ivy League educated, Government and Economics major who also minored in Asian Studies. Some of the better takeaways:

I think there is a cultural tradition of acceptance of hostess bars, probably coming from a mixture of the geisha traditions in Japan and sex work in Southeast Asia brought back by the military.

One major reason why mama-sans in Hawaii exist is pure economics. This type of job is one that requires no education, and no background check, and of course can be very profitable… It is probably one of the few jobs for women that allows them to be the boss without having to compete against men.

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