I never thought I would see the day that Tyra Banks would use her show to publicly destroy hard working mothers. I found myself changing the channel several times during today's show, which she called Weekday Soccer Moms, Weekend Strippers, because I was horrified by what I was hearing. Not from the mothers on the panel, but from Tyra herself. In case you don't watch The Tyra Show or in case you missed it, let me recap.

The women on today's show were mothers who currently have careers within the sex industry. The first guest works as a dominatrix calling herself Mistress Isis, where she fulfills the fantasies of her clients (without sexual intercourse). She took on the job as a way to keep food on the table for her 3 children, after losing her job due to an injury. She enjoys her work and views it as what it is, a job. The second guest works as an exotic dancer (this term was never used during the entire show) as a way of providing for her daughter as well. Tyra deemed it necessary to spend over half the show trying to convert Mistress Isis (the dominatrix) into being a more wholesome example for her children. Apparently, being a sex worker should not be an occupation that any "good" mother would dream of doing because it "hurts" their children. This was a little hard for me to follow since Tyra kept trying to force feed Mistress Isis's daughter (who was 21 years old btw) sorrow and pain from a deep dark place in order to get her to agree that her mother's work really has had a lasting effect on her life. And the point when Tyra called on clinical psychologist Dr. Andrea Macari to diagnosis Mistress Isis as having unresolved teenage issues that have lead her to become a dominatrix is when I first changed the channel.

At what point does it become ok for motherhood to dictate a woman's entire life? Can anyone list every single characteristic of a "good" mother? Should women who work in the sex industry be denied their rights to become mothers? These are the questions that sprang to mind as I tried to wrap my head around Tyra's behavior today. She was extremely rude to Mistress Isis stating that because she chooses to work as a dominatrix that she is being selfish to her children. Only thinking about herself. Behaving like a child when she should be an example for the child that was sitting next to her. If these things were true then this mother of 3 would not be putting her hard earned cash toward keeping her children happy and healthy. When trying to state her case Tyra barreled in with insult after insult and denounced Mistress Isis's agency as a kind of acting out because she gave up her dreams to become a mother. Yes, Tyra went and played the "mother card" just because she is against sex work in general. I have seen it time and time again. She will use her show as a forum to preach to the exotic dancers or adult entertainers that she has as guests. Surprisingly, she has no idea how to really be objective when something is going down that she doesn't agree with. Isn't that sorta the job of a talk show host? To check your ego at the door and while voicing your opinions be mindful and respectful of the opinions of others? Yeah, that sure as hell didn't happen today.

The many ways in which "mother" is defined can be very interesting. People seem to think that once a woman becomes a mother that is the only hat that she can wear or the only role that she can play throughout her entire life. She is suppose to throw everything else out the window, hopes and dreams along with self, and devote every fiber of her being to her child(ren). Or at least wait until the children are all grown and she has gone gray before she can own any other identity besides "mother". We are taught by tv shows, psychologists and our own parents that these are the things that "good" mothers do. Like I said, defining what a "mother" is can be every interesting. So what do you think? Regardless to if you agree that sex work is actual work or not, if a woman is the sole provider for her children and is doing so legally, should she be condemned for the type of job she has?