An exotic dancer-turned-legal eagle is turning her sights on five New York jiggle joints and their managers for allegedly trafficking her and allowing customers to rape and beat her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was dancing, I watched clubs take money to turn a blind eye to what was happening to me and to other dancers,\u201d Christine DeMaria told The Post, detailing the vicious behavior she allegedly endured while working in a pair of \u201cprivate\u201d VIP lounges in Manhattan.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was bit above my left breast so hard, it bled. I was sexually assaulted by customers while on stage. A guy choked me by putting a belt around my neck, and he then raped me up against a wall. I was fired for reporting a rape,\u201d the 37-year-old claimed.<\/p>\n
Christine DeMaria wants to buck the strip club status quo. SWITCH CARES<\/p>\n
DeMaria grew up in New Jersey, and by the age of 15, was trafficked to Arizona by an older man who had been grooming her, she said.<\/p>\n
By 2014, she was stripping.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was fired for reporting a rape at a club, and as I was being fired, the manager told me, \u2018You\u2019re a stripper. You asked for this.\u2019 <\/p>\n
\u201cOf course I didn\u2019t ask to be raped.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was slapped in the face on several occasions \u2014 hit so hard, her skin was left red, DeMaria claimed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the strip club industry, dancers are often forced to choose between accepting sexual abuse or walking away without the means to support themselves,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver and over, I witnessed the owners and managers of strip clubs completely disregard human life.\u201d<\/p>\n
DeMaria left the industry more than a decade ago. SWITCH CARES<\/p>\n
She stepped off the stage for good in 2021 \u2014 and decided to hit the legal books instead, attending New York Law School.<\/p>\n
While she was still in law school, DeMaria launched a non-profit called Switch<\/a>, or Sex Workers in Transition Compassion Home, which aims to provide dancers with \u201ceducation, career guidance, and a real exit ramp if they want one.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2023, DeMaria was recognized with the Walentas Family Foundation\u2019s David Prize<\/a>, which bestows $200,000 each upon five \u201cvisionary\u201d New Yorkers annually.<\/p>\n DeMaria launched Switch to provide resources and support to women in the industry. Christine DeMaria\/ Instagram<\/p>\n \u201cIn an industry that puts a price on people, Christine envisions a New York where people can instead be priceless,\u201d according to the David Prize online profile.<\/a><\/p>\n She graduated law school in June and passed the state bar a month later<\/a>.<\/p>\n DeMaria, who worked for Sapphire 39<\/a> in Midtown and Sapphire 60<\/a> on the Upper East Side, is seeking $10 million damages against the company for alleged \u201crape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, forcible touching, assault, battery, sex trafficking, and unlawful false imprisonment,\u201d according to her Manhattan Supreme Court filings.<\/p>\n \u201cI witnessed women punished for refusing sex acts and for reporting sexual assault, while management profited from our suffering and sold access to our bodies without our knowledge,\u201d DeMaria told The Post.<\/p>\n DeMaria said club owners and managers of strip clubs completely disregard human life. Christine DeMaria\/ Instagram<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was dancing, I didn\u2019t have the resources, knowledge, or support to pursue justice,\u201d she added. \u201cMy law school education changed that. Now, I intend to hold these clubs accountable for abusing women in violation of the law.\u201d<\/p>\n DeMaria has also sued Vivid Cabaret, on West 37rd Street, and Hoops Cabaret on West 33rd Street, which share the same ownership, for $15 million, accusing the company of rape, sex assault and sex trafficking, as well as forcible touching and battery, among other claims.<\/p>\n She has accused the club Gossip, on Long Island, of sexual harassment, gender discrimination and other claims, seeking $2.5 million in damages, according to court records.<\/p>\n The cases are pending. Lawyers for Vivid, Hoops, and Gossip didn\u2019t return calls for comment.<\/p>\n Four other former dancers have joined DeMaria\u2019s case against Sapphire, alleging in court papers they were also subjected to sexual violence \u201cresulting in physical and emotional harm.\u201d<\/p>\n Sapphire 39 in Midtown got new ownership in 2017. Leonardo Munoz<\/p>\n