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On November 8, 2001, I filed a lawsuit claiming sexual harassment against my former boss. On February 22, 2006, at the U.S. Supreme Court, my case was finally closed. Late one evening in October 2001, I was closing up the bar and restaurant where I worked, when the owner came behind the bar, restrained me, and stuck his hand up my skirt. People mentioned to me that I shouldn't have been working at a bar in the first place, but I am not sure that those individuals have ever worked in the service industry. Without a degree and a desire to make art, it was easy for me to be drawn to the working lifestyle of late hours and decent money in order to make rent. I loved to tend bar, it was a job just like any other job. Unfortunately situations like the one I went through happen much more often than is reported. It is my goal as both an artist and a 12-year veteran of the service industry to communicate to others who may find themselves torn between paying rent and dealing with humiliating, sometimes traumatizing situations. Choose to speak up; the more you do the less these situations will happen. (Chicago, IL)
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