Zola's story was enjoyed by so many and passed along and along, not just because it's a riveting, wild, funny, tragic, engaging and believably unbelievable tale, but because Zola is patently unapologetic about the life. Her life. She never takes a step back from the action to consider whether the underlying context deserves a moral analysis.
A breath of fresh air, when most other writing on the subject of prostitution seems to always portray the sex worker as a victim. To the circus-like extent that, even when confronted with all evidence that when a woman makes a conscious and personal choice to make a choice (to sell her pussy, have a pimp, etc. in this case), the third party square commentator always asserts the whore must be a victim of something... something beyond her own power, the subject of psychological damage, manipulation, brainwashing, violence, disadvantaged upbringing, horrible family, racial inequity, economic depravity, etc. etc. No matter what, the woman is always a victim to a group of very vocal moral constructionists looking to build their utopia. In this story, Zola is no victim. She's actually quite street smart and on top of her game while rolling through the punches of her circumstances.
It is what it is. It is her life and she owns it. Selling her own or another woman's pussy is just fine to her, she jokes about it at every turn. If Jess, in the story, chooses to have a pimp, so be it, it is her choice. She doesn't give a f*ck what anyone else thinks. Zola, in this day and age, is somehow revered as an empowered woman. Everyone in the heart of the action was an adult, they chose to play The Game and deal with the roller coaster of consequences. Everyone was a victim and no one was, simultaneously.
A twisted story, yes. Even if some of the details were embellished for effect, the pimping, whoring, stripping lifestyle is going on. And not only is it out of the shadows, but it is celebrated on reality TV, the Billboard Top 100 charts, in the clubs and in the classroom.
Welcome to the Age of Strippers and Whores, a happy sisterhood supported by mainstream media, music and popular genre. It's existed for a long time, but now it is not only revealed, but reveled in, so much so that many young women aspire to this life. Many can't wait until their 18th birthday for their chance to swing on the pole.
Zola, an admitted stripper, hoe, quasi-pimp, and accessory to murder or attempted murder, will… in the likes of Paris Hilton, Kardashians, Bad Girls Club and the list goes on… be elevated to media fame and financial fortune, thereby further reinforcing The New Normal.