Ashley's Voice: 'Spitzer Girl' No Monster

Since the story of Eliot Spitzer's political demise hit the national news, there has been the usual saturation coverage, and what I find to be a disturbing attitude displayed by the public and the media. On the one hand, Eliot Spitzer, while not getting a free pass, has generally been portrayed as a good guy brought low by human weakness, a "personal tragedy".

On the other hand, since the revelation of the identity of the girl for whom Spitzer was allegedly "Client #9", Ashley Alexandra Dupre', it seems to be open season on her virtue, her character, even her hopes and dreams.

Ashley is an aspiring singer, performer of the song "What We Want" in the video below. You can buy the song here. She has already received an offer to pose for Penthouse Magazine.

A lot of what I have been reading is hostility toward Ashley for "ruining Spitzer's career", or jokes about her status as "Spitzer's Whore", or glib mockery of her musical aspirations. There's all this empathy for poor, defenseless, former crusading Attorney General-turned New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer, but 22 year-old Ashley is a lucky whore who gets to cash in now.

Ashley doesn't want you to think she's a monster. That sounds reasonable to me.

I went into this story with a sense of outrage at the injustice of this situation, knowing nothing more about Ashley than the headlines portrayed. Stoked by my contempt for Spitzer's reprehensible disrespect for women everywhere and his abuse and betrayal of his office, and exacerbated by the spectacle of his weak, equivocating apology, I could not fathom the public's reaction to this, particularly my fellow Democrats.

The more I learned about Ashley, the more I liked her. It turns out she's a Jersey girl, and that we were practically neighbors before she ran away from what she describes as a broken, abusive home at age 17. That's her Wall Township High School photo there.

She's a very attractive girl, but not exactly the embodiment of sex. Maybe it's just me, but I think she bears a strong resemblance to Sandra Bullock, who is everyone's sweetheart. In the age of MySpace, you can get to know that which a person wants you to know about them. Ashley says this about her song:

It's really about trust, something my past has made very difficult for me to feel. This one was inspired by a guy, who taught me not to confuse my dreams with the sounds of the city...I hope you like it.

She writes in a voice tinged with melodrama, but an authentic pain emerges between the lines. She's not self-pitying, she is determined, yet she is hiding any mention of her "secret life", because she does not see it as part of who she is, but merely something she does.

Ashley only posted one blog entry on her MySpace page, nearly a year ago. It's full of bravado and self-affirmation, but then it concludes:

...you have to decide if that person is worthy of being a part of "your" life....because it is your life, your show...you decide who you want the characters to be...not the other way around. Every person is different, every person has their voice...can you recognize your voice, listen to it, and stick up for it??

That's a pretty hard-bitten attitude for a 21 year-old girl to have. This passage gets at the crux of my problem with Spitzer, and with the pile of judgment being heaped on Ashley. She chose to leave home at 17 to escape abuse, not much of a choice. She dreams of a music career, she talks about relationships, these are the things that are important to her. If she hadn't been homeless and struggling to survive, would she have chosen to do what she did? Would she have ever chosen to spend time with Eliot Spitzer?

After reading her own words, I saw her differently. There's a softness and a strength in her eyes. Things could have gone much worse for her, that's for sure, and I doubt that the contempt of people who don't know her will have too bad an effect on her. I just think someone should say that she doesn't deserve it. If you take the time to listen to what she says, you'll see that she is that someone. Knowing what I know now, I have more respect for Ashley than I ever will for Eliot Spitzer or anyone like him.

She has a brother who she lists as her number one influence, and what seem to be two very good friends who spoke with obvious and sincere affection for her on the Today Show. If you want to call Ashley names and pass judgment on her, you might want to avoid doing it in front of these three.