How Much Am I Worth?: Sexual Tourism in the Caribbean

When considering the ideas of female sexuality as it pertains to tourism in the Caribbean, people tend to envision call-girls at upscale parties and prostitutes that sell their bodies to the highest bidder. However, when taking a deeper look, one can see beyond the surface into the reality of the situation. Taking into consideration the ideas of female sexuality as it pertains to tourism in the Caribbean, people tend to envision call-girls at upscale parties and prostitutes that sell their bodies to the highest bidder. However, when taking a deeper look, one can see beyond the surface into the reality of the situation. The fact is that women in the Caribbean have found ways to manage their involvement in sex tourism, music and dance to their own advantage, thereby demonstrating agency. Prior to exhibiting the truth about female agency within sex tourism in the Caribbean, it is necessary to call attention to the myths that suggest that most women are oppressed within the industry. According to Victoria Durant-Gonzalez, there is a theory that speaks to the “grace of sexuality” which suggests that women are placed into a detrimental situation at the hands of this theory: "In Jamaica, the number of women with social ties to a man is an indicator of his social status. In this way, women in the society reaffirm, reinforce, and in some instances determine male social status. An important aspect of female affirmation of male social status is the underlying assumption that these ties are sex-based....simply suggesting intimacy reinforces male status. It is from this suggestive element that the grace of sexuality is derived. Thus the grace of sexuality places men and women into reciprocal relationships whereby women receive access to sources of livelihood and men receive arbitration of social status.... The grace of sexuality persists because it is an efficient way of meeting and carrying out female familial responsibility." (Henry 1981, 7)
These sentiments suggest

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