BY LINDSAY COLEMAN, ILLUSTRATIONS BY LAURA PARK
The corner of Avenue C and 20th Street West in the heart of Riversdale, Saskatoon, is in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Canada. On a recent evening, the only open businesses here were a Chinese restaurant up the road and a pawnshop. Everything else was either locked up for the night or abandoned. The terrain is so flat that the sound of police sirens carried from miles away. You could actually hear the wind blowing through the streets. There weren’t many people outside. Some crackhead in sweatpants was shouting nonsense across the street. I was standing on the corner talking to two good-looking prostitutes. Both girls had recently been released from prison.
“So far today I gave one guy head and robbed two others,” said Chantelle, who is barely five feet tall. She was wearing black sweatpants with piping running up the sides and a pair of generic white sneakers. She’s 25 years old, but she looks much younger. She was born on a reserve a few hours outside of the city and has been a prostitute since she was nine years old. “I was forced into it,” she said. “That’s how it all started.”
Her friend Stef has a similar story. She left the reserve young, was prostituted by force when she was ten, and has been in Saskatoon ever since.
“The first time I ever did it,” Chantelle told me, “a guy took me around a corner and made me give him a blow job.” And this was when you were nine, I confirmed. “Yes,” Chantelle said. “Child prostitution is big. I see the little kids out here and I slap them. I tell them to get the fuck off the street. But what can you do? A lot of them are being forced to do it by their families so they can have more money.”
“In ’99 a blow job was $60, sex was $80, and a half-and-half was $100,” Stef said. Almost a decade later, prices are at rock bottom. “Now the prices are like $20 or even $10 because there’s more competition. It’s way harder to make a living now than it used to be.” Chantelle nodded in agreement.
The area has seen an influx of sex-trade workers who are offering lower-than-usual prices in an attempt to entice clients away from the competition. “Most of our clients we know, or we know through someone somehow,” Stef explained, “but the ones we don’t know—the ones that just pull up looking for a good time—those are the guys we rob.”
Stef and Chantelle decided it was time to take a break and go for a drink. We turned on to a side street and made our way to a local bar. The wind was so strong that the stoplights were bouncing up and down. Almost every house on the street looked like a small, dilapidated barn. There was row upon row of sinking verandas, leaky roofs, and clapboard. Many of the houses were boarded up.
Stef and Chantelle don’t have homes of their own. They pay people to let them sleep on their couches or crash in a spare room for a little while. Some parts of Saskatoon are pretty well off, and an economic growth spurt has driven prices sky-high. Rent control has been abolished. As a result, even total dumps are too expensive for many locals. There are few hostels and a severe lack of social housing. The working poor live in their cars or in rent-by-the-week motels like the Barry around the corner. (It had a piece of white paper in the window that said “Closed” on it, and when I returned a few days later I learned that it was about to be demolished. I went inside and found rooms with dirty syringes on the floors and blood on the walls.)
There was a parking lot next to the bar and another one behind it. The outside glowed with a creepy blue light, but inside it was clean and carpeted. There was a curtain in the back that hid a room reserved for private events and banquets, and a row of video-lottery terminals that made high-pitched electronic squeals and bangs. A large group of native women in black sweatshirts sat at a big table. They looked like they were in their 30s and they stared like they wanted to beat the shit out of us, but no one said anything. One guy was sitting alone wearing sunglasses and a black leather cowboy hat. Three vodka drinks cost us $14.
I asked the girls about local gangs like the Terror Squad, Native Syndicate, and Indian Posse. All are known to be major players in the community. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Stef said, shaking her head at me. “I don’t know nothing about no gangs. We’ve never even heard those names before, have we?” she asked, looking to Chantelle for support. “Nope.” Chantelle agreed. There is no better proof of the iron-fisted grip gangs have over the community than the fact that the residents won’t even discuss them. But most of the drug and sex trade is being run through gang networks.
“OK, look, I can’t tell you who, but I can tell you there are gangs in the area,” Chantelle eventually offered. “I was taken hostage by a rival gang of my ex-boyfriend’s a few years ago,” she said. “They held me hostage for five days. Had me tied me up for most of it. They broke my arm, fractured my...” She trailed off. “I wished I would die.” Eventually they returned her to her ex-boyfriend. During her abduction, no missing-persons report was filed and no police action was taken. Incidents like this are commonplace, and because they generally go unreported, obtaining accurate statistics is impossible.
“From a police perspective, we know who most of the players are and we keep tabs on these people,” Lorne Constantinoff, Saskatoon’s police inspector, told me. “It’s just a matter of figuring out how we’re going to catch them.” But the violence in the neighborhood can’t be attributed to a single source. Gangs might be the worst offenders, but shootings and stabbings are common occurrences among non-gang members as well. Stef and Chantelle told me that more and more prostitutes are using dirty needles as weapons in stickups. “Prostitutes who are dope-sick do it,” Stef said. “They hold them up with dirty needles because it’s easier and it’s faster and they want their dope.” While neither Stef nor Chantelle have tested positive for HIV, they both have hepatitis C.
According to the local deputy medical health officer, Dr. John Mark Opondo, almost two-thirds of all new HIV cases in Saskatoon are from dirty needles. “We have been seeing, in the last few years, a rapid increase in the frequency of HIV cases, especially in the risk group of sex workers who also use needles for drug use,” said Opondo. People are injecting everything from cocaine to Ritalin. In an attempt to diminish the contraction of HIV, the Ministry of Health has created programs like a needle exchange. “We have a van that goes around to various places in the community, and we have three or four fixed exchange locations,” said Opondo. The Ministry of Health has also stationed receptacles specifically for the collection and safe disposal of contaminated needles. “We are seeing a rise in IV drug use. In particular crystal meth is becoming very popular, as well as the use of crack cocaine intravenously,” said Constantinoff.
The fact that Saskatoon is smack-dab in the middle of nowhere means that it has to rely on cross-country traffic for its drugs, so huge busts and crackdowns elsewhere in the country can make the supply unpredictable. And since Saskatoon is about 15 years behind in pop culture, the rave scene has only just landed. Drugs like Special-K are in high demand now, but when a British Columbian source was recently raided, it left the entire city of Saskatoon dry. It’s virtually impossible to get K there today, and when you can find it, it costs more than coke. Stef told me that there’s a small independent operation that brings it in from Ontario sometimes. It’s probably worth their trouble: People will pay a ton for K here, and dealers can make huge profits.
When demand exceeds supply, Stef and Chantelle will prostitute themselves for drugs instead of money. “Cocaine and mo, those are our drugs of choice. But I like cocaine the best.” Stef says.
The bar was filling up—it was karaoke night. They had videos on a big-screen TV in the middle of the room. Stef returned from her third trip to the bathroom and she seemed to be in a much better mood. She was smiling a lot and sweating less. The girls talked about their plans for the rest of the night. Chantelle was squirming in her chair and tapping her legs against the table. She seemed agitated. Stef had blown through more of their stash than they’d agreed on. To supplement their income from prostitution, they both sell off whatever drugs they don’t use, but now Stef had done most of it.
We went outside for a cigarette. Stef unzipped her pants and pulled them down slightly. She reached into her underwear and started to scratch her crotch. “Aw, time to shave again,” she said. She kept rubbing herself vigorously as about ten other smokers stood around and watched her. When we got back inside, she headed to the bathroom again. Chantelle and I sat at the table and finished our drinks.
“I went to university, you know,” she told me. “I took engineering, but I ended up being a drug counselor. I went to schools and gave speeches about how I did drugs and why I quit. I was clean for four years.” She poked at the ice in her glass as she told me about her three kids and how they’re all in foster care. “I think they’re better off where they are,” she said. “I can’t take care of them when I’m like this. I can’t do things with them when I’m high. They would want to go to the park and I couldn’t take them because I just wanted to do drugs. I couldn’t make ends meet. Welfare was paying $475 of my $1,300-a-month rent. For a family of four! It’s not enough. People can’t live. They have to find other ways to pay the bills. I want to get my kids back and be working. I want to get off of this. But I don’t have a home, I don’t have anything or anyone to fall back on.”
When the girls were ready to leave the bar I dropped them off at a strip mall a couple miles away. Chantelle and Stef hugged me and hopped out of the taxi like I’d just dropped them off at the movies. What they were actually going to do was sell $20 blow jobs and maybe rob a few guys to make enough money for more drugs. And that’s probably a good night in Riversdale, Saskatoon, the flattest place in Canada.
See all articles by this contributor Anonymous, on Nov 13, 2009 wrote:
I know people who are right from Batoche, right from the heart of "nativeness" in Saskatchewan, people whose grandparents were full blooded indians or "6", if you go by gov’t categories. These people should be proud of their heritage, because it is one of the last wild, brave and pure peoples of the earth that they are descended from. These people have gone on to live their lives peacefully, have chosen to better themselves, have not fallen into the typical traps of the reserve life. They have chosen to leave that life behind. Now, a generation later, they don’t want it know that they are METIS by definition. They don’t want it know that they have any connection to these old ways. They have chosen a better path and are truly ashamed to admit their family leniage. Something we all can do, is make choices, no matter what our heritage. Is there not a black president of the U.S.now? Are there not women who are deeply embeded in the political process? Being a nitchywab is not an excuse for being a ho. They just simply refuse to work at McDonalds and like to blame whitey for their backwards ways. They simply refuse to take responsibility for the situation they are in at the moment. We all have choices we can make....to be a methhead or not....is that really a question........loser? Smarten up, become real people, quit living on welfare, get a legitimate job, quit blowing dirty pricks and respect yourself. The enemy here is ignorance, and arrogance. | | Anonymous, on Nov 12, 2009 wrote:
The natives should be moved out of every city and put back on their reserves like they did in US. For centuries natives were hunters and now that its all gone and they have nothing to do...what do you expect? They have no education and will not have any education because the parents do not push their kids to do it... and the apple does not fall far from the tree. Put them back on the fields and let them do whatever they want.... it is their land so they should know how to survive on it and it will give them back their purpose as hunters or fishermen instead of drinking and doing drugs. | | Anonymous, on Oct 25, 2009 wrote:
Yes, Saskatoon IS a beautiful city, and the Westside is FINE- I live there,but these problems in Riversdale and other core areas are not going away. The author never said this didn’t happen anywhere else. The important thing is it’s happening here. Oh, and that ritalin people are using- it’s prescribed to kids who need it, badly. This problem is affecting everyone and it’s good for people to read about it. | | Anonymous, on Mar 28, 2009 wrote:
There is no such thing as being "stuck" anywhere. I got where I was b/c of my choices, & when I got tired of livin’ that way, I made different choices.....tough ones, at the time, but I like my life now. SO to blame ONE city? I don’t buy it. It happens EVERYWHERE. Visit some other countries & you’ll be less niave!
Glad the author added a life experience to her writing repitoire. | | Anonymous, on Mar 11, 2009 wrote:
I not shocked someone would write an artical like this. Saskatoon has its problems...prostitution, drugs, gangs, cost of living....but this artical is written in poor taste by this "author".It is offensive to the people who live on the westside and call Saskatoon home...like me. | | Anonymous, on Feb 7, 2009 wrote:
this is awful writing can’t believe they printed this
| | Anonymous, on Feb 5, 2009 wrote:
How do you know hookers aren’t holding up people with needles in ANY city? People - use some common sense here. | | Anonymous, on Feb 4, 2009 wrote:
you’re right. there are bad areas in every town, but i don’t know of one where hookers are holding people up with dirty needles. that’s a whole different ball game. | | Anonymous, on Feb 4, 2009 wrote:
What a terrible article. Every city has a bad area, so why base a whole article around ours and label the ENTIRE city after it? I agree we have troubles, but what city doesn’t?!! It’s a shame you live (and unsuccessfully) represnted our this city.
Ps - you look like a man. I’ve seen you around :) | | Anonymous, on Feb 2, 2009 wrote:
the rave scene came here in the early ’90s. stoon is a nice place. | | Anonymous, on Feb 1, 2009 wrote:
saskatoon is quite a beautiful city | |
| paddym, on Jan 30, 2009 wrote:
Heh. I was born in Saskatoon in the 60’s and left in 18. Even when I was a little kid 2oth and Avenue C was notorious. I lived in westview. Is it still a shit-hole? The Indian people have suffered a lot. Be thankful you’re not overrun with Somalians..... | | Anonymous, on Jan 29, 2009 wrote:
crazy to see saskatoon mentioned here. i split my time between saskatoon and the uk, and when in toontown i live near riversdale. i fail to see the point of the article. every urban area has socio-economic and public health issues. i’d take riversdale over any economically deprived area in the uk, that’s for damn sure. | | Anonymous, on Jan 28, 2009 wrote:
so this is what it has come to. I live in saskatoon. i am not from here. I am from farther north saskatchewan, prince albert, the saskatoon people think P.A is scary. None of it is scary madame’s and monsieurs it’s called life. Everyone is brought up in situations that can be dangerous and trying, every person i have met has had K,coke, morphine, or meth ect. be pushed on them and shit most of us have tried. It is how you deal with these situations and all situations in life that define you as a person. Being brought up in hardship and allowing yourself to succeed is not an unimaginable feet, we see it everyday. I have travelled through asia and europe and South America and I choose to come back and call Saskatoon my home. We are privildged to live in such a wonderful city. | | Anonymous, on Jan 27, 2009 wrote:
i’m curious if these needle disposal sites ever work. i don’t see junkies running an errand down to the needle drop when there’s nothing in it for them. | | Anonymous, on Jan 27, 2009 wrote:
well from the looks of things, everyone here from saskatoon couldn’t have written in an objective way. | | Anonymous, on Jan 26, 2009 wrote:
Anonymous, on Jan 21, 2009 wrote:
"Go search this girl on facebook and see if she’s in ANY place to judge whether or not "Saskatoon is about 15 years behind in pop culture" She’s a scary mutant."
Agreed. Seems like this author was more so trying to get some sort of shock value istead of going behind the real issues. An article like this could have been done and written way better. Maybe by someone who has actually experienced this life and not some nieve little girl | |
| shep, on Jan 26, 2009 wrote:
anyone that has really lived in a true city can tell you that you can try to avoid the shitty parts and people all you want but it’s not happening. maybe in a town where you don’t use public transit and there are subdivisions or whatever, but in a real city it doesn’t work that way. | |
| Tammy Faye, on Jan 26, 2009 wrote:
It’s hard for me to feel too badly for these ladies when they complain about rent and welfare and then spend what little money they have on drugs. | | Anonymous, on Jan 25, 2009 wrote:
wait, i don’t get it. you say her story is highlighting segregation and racism, but you talk about the saskatoon cops leaving natives out to die. am i missing something? sounds like you’re calling the kettle black to me. | | Anonymous, on Jan 25, 2009 wrote:
I grew up in that neighbourhood, $100 says that writer didn’t. She’s an idiot - and a bad writer.
If you want to read something sad and true about saskatoon read Starlight Tours - its about the time in the 1990s when the local police were committing genocide by dropping young native men on the edge of town in the middle of winter - after taking their shoes and coats. Saskatoon is very troubled indeed - but stories written by privileged white girls touristing in poor neighbourhoods only serves to highlight the problem of segregation and systemic rascism.
The writer’s story is a load of shit. | | Anonymous, on Jan 24, 2009 wrote:
yeah, I guess is a bit different from the suburbs, so I guess if you’ve never spent much time in a city it might be a bit surprising there are prostitutes and people with rough lives, but if you don’t get involved with that, then it’s actually quite a nice place to live/work...and whoever said that you won’t see any white people on 20th really needs to get there head of there ass and leave the suburbs once or twice in there life. | | Anonymous, on Jan 24, 2009 wrote:
This is interesting...I have to wonder when this is from....maybe the early 90’s? I actually live a block away from where C & 19th. There is definitely some rough people around and run down houses, but I live in a great house half a block from a brilliant farmers’ market, half a block from a really nice river bank park with a canoe and kayak club in it, two blocks from a completely restored vaudeville-style movie theatre, which sits next two a couple of the best art galleries in tow and right near a half dozen great restaurants. | | Anonymous, on Jan 23, 2009 wrote:
looks like memphis | | Anonymous, on Jan 23, 2009 wrote:
did the saskatoon gazette feature this story or something? where are all you people coming from? | |
| shelby, on Jan 21, 2009 wrote:
leaving a town is easier said than done. and for the kids, unless they runaway, which probably doesn’t get them anywhere better off, it’s impossible. | | Anonymous, on Jan 21, 2009 wrote:
If any of you people would see what it’s really like there you would not say that people live in that kind of a shit life on purpose. They do not want to be ghetto to be cool. It’s all they have. And the government needs to do something about it. And the racism that exists there and everywhere in the city | | Anonymous, on Jan 21, 2009 wrote:
Go search this girl on facebook and see if she’s in ANY place to judge whether or not "Saskatoon is about 15 years behind in pop culture" She’s a scary mutant. | | Anonymous, on Jan 20, 2009 wrote:
its because of gangsta rap being popular and kids with fuck-up parents finding it and adopting thug lifestyles, its more like they are "playing gangsta" like it was cops and robbers or cowboys and indians. its cool to be ghetto these days and have hardships to whine about, all these ghetto people are as retarded as emo teenagers cutting themselves for attention. just get a job at tim hortons and party on the weekend. but i guess natives aren’t used to working, unless you call getting drunk every day a job, and thats a social problem with many reasons behind it. | | Anonymous, on Jan 20, 2009 wrote:
This story has a common theme that could apply to any city around the world. With that said, Saskatoon is incredibly uncool and extremely lame. There are good people here, but anyone that thinks this place is cool needs to get a clue. | | | Next 30 comments > |
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