As anyone who has ever tried to pay their own way through college will know, the cost of higher education these days makes it nearly impossible for the average person to attain a degree. Some students are lucky enough to have their parents cough up some cash for them, and others put in enough hard graft to get a scholarship, but, for the vast majority of us, college ends up being the most expensive venture of our lives.
Fortunately, there are ways of getting around it. Many young people end up taking out loans or getting part time jobs in order to help them cope with the financial strain.
But, for one Washington teen who hoped to study law, those options didn't quite cut it - so she decided to become a
porn star instead.
Miriam Weeks, who is better known by her onscreen name, Belle Knox, first shot to fame at the age of 18 after it transpired that she had been acting in blue movies in order to save enough money for law school.
She had previously hidden her identity at Duke University, which costs $60,000 a year, but penned an essay in 2014 exposing herself and her former profession. Her decision to do so was spurred by bullying and blackmailing from other students.
"The Internet does not dictate my life," she said. "My sexuality is not some sort of blackmail to be used against me, granting you ownership over my life or my story. It is my life. It is my story."
She went on to say that others in her personal life had criticized her for her decision to fund her law studies, but that she doesn't think she deserves any negativity for simply doing what she had to do in order to give herself better options later on in life.
"In my own personal life, I am devastated to reveal that many of those closest to me have unleashed similar cruelty. Many have simply shut me out. Some of my best and oldest friends have told me that I deserve anything negative or horrible that comes my way - and that terrible things are what I have brought upon myself when I decided to do porn."
Her parents, however, were understanding of her decision. She did not warn them about her intentions before she went into
the porn industry, but says that they were "absolutely supportive" of her choice.
Aside from receiving a great deal of hate because of her chosen profession, Weeks also found herself the subject of abuse after it was noticed that she had a lot of scars on her body. But she has been open and honest about these, saying that she suffered from depression for many years - at times to the point of feeling suicidal - and used to take out her negative feelings on herself through cutting.
Now 22 years of age, Weeks is majoring in Women's Studies and Sociology at Duke. She claims that her former career has empowered her, and believes she is making a statement about women owning their sexualities. More than anything, though, Weeks' experience offers a good commentary on the state of higher education in America.
"My story is a testament to how f***ing expensive school is," Weeks said in an interview with Playboy. "The fact that the only viable options to pay for college are to take out gigantic student loans, to not go to college at all or to join the sex industry really says something."
No matter your opinion on it, Weeks was able to achieve her goal - and she's perfectly happy with the choices she made.
