Rrrrrrrrr-oww! The claws came out across New York yesterday, all thanks to high-priced Eliot Spitzer escort Ashley Dupre.
The citywide catfight erupted after Dupre posted an online diatribe arguing that the average New York woman is no better than a prostitute as she strives to marry a wealthy man.
It had many Gotham gals fuming.
“I don’t agree with what she said — I would totally never do anything like that,” sniffed Justyna Cichon, 29, of Long Island City.
Dupre — whose bedroom dalliances with former Gov. Eliot Spitzer infamously brought him down — wrote her caustic comments Wednesday in a posting put up on rap impresario Russell Simmons’ Global Grind Web site. She said she’s seen a lot of women toy with men, go on dates to get good food, beg for clothes and ask for rent money.
“It’s a dishonest relationship. I’ve seen it all over New York City,” she wrote.
The implication of rampant gold-digging left Cichon disgusted.
“She did it, [and] she thinks that every woman is like that,” she said. “When she says that all women are that way, I’m included. So I think that’s offensive.”
Lena Herdoon also was among the women outraged by Dupre.
“What she said about all women isn’t true,” said the 21-year-old student from SoHo.
“I think it’s offensive. In today’s society, you shouldn’t have to put yourself out there to get ahead. It’s disheartening she feels this way about women. When she says that women have to do that to get ahead, I completely disagree. As a woman, you have to have self-respect.”
But while some city women were incensed, others nodded in agreement.
“I agree,” said Jasmin, a 20-year-old Queens woman. “There are a lot of women like her. It’s expensive to live here.”
Kristen, 24, of Manhattan, who asked her last name not be used, said she was on the same page as Dupre.
“It’s just as easy to fall in love with a rich man as a poor man, so why would you go with the poor guy?” she told The Post.
“This city is filled with very wealthy men, and it’s not difficult to do,” she added. “It’s a certain type of girl who will do that. There are girls who will play that game. [That’s why] you’ve got those services like Sugardaddy.com.”
Autumn, 29, a Manhattan woman who also asked to remain anonymous, said Dupre exposed one of the city’s ugly truths.
“It’s reality in New York. It’s true. I’d like to say it’s not, but it is,” she said. “There is many a story: When you move to the city, you meet rich, 40-year-old guys who buy you drinks and offer to put you up in a hotel room. They are not giving you direct cash, but you’re getting things for sleeping with them. You’re getting something you want, and he is getting someone he wants.”
Meanwhile, Dupre spoke out yesterday on Twitter thanking supporters and saying that she was only speaking the “ugly truth.”
“I am only fighting to be who I really am,” she tweeted.
Choosing sides: Yay & Nay
Nahjaley Taylor
23, Brooklyn, musician
“She is the bravest woman in New York City.
What she said is not that much of a big deal, it’s the truth. That’s the world we live in today. It’s about sex and money. Everybody’s trying to be rich.
I don’t know why everyone points the finger at her. What about him?
It takes two to tango. All New York women are doing the same thing that she was doing, they’re just not real about it.
Play or get played.
She is brave to be making these comments. She is not ashamed. She wasn’t the one who had a ring on her finger. She didn’t do anything wrong.
She’s just like me, and I respect her. Real recognize real.
She’s a real woman. I’d love to do a [song] track with her. She’s a very courageous woman. She’s a go-getter.“
Jenny Weinstein
20, Manhattan, fashion student
“I think she has no right to say what she said. She brought the criticism on herself. She had sex for money with a married governor, and that’s just wrong.
She does not give a good image for girls. Anyone with class wouldn’t be a prostitute, especially with a married man.
What she said was out of line. Getting paid for sex is dirty. The public can’t get over what she did because it’s disgusting.
Being taken to dinner is not the same as prostitution. A man buying you clothing or jewelry is not prostitution. A man taking you on vacation is getting up there, but it isn’t prostitution.
I don’t want Ashley Dupre to speak for me. I want nothing to do with her.
She is giving guys the right to treat women like prostitutes. And I don’t want anyone to treat me like that.
She’s giving guys another reason to be ungentlemanly. It makes me feel scared for the future.
If guys think all women are prostitutes, then they might be more comfortable going to a prostitute, and that’s horrible.
Her remarks make me feel fearful of guys’ intentions.“