Abstract
The Amy Ayoub Papers (1906-2022) document the life and career of Amy Ayoub, a long-time resident of Las Vegas, Nevada. The collection consists of correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings, research, and other material that document the numerous facets of Ayoub's life. The collection covers many areas: Ayoub's early childhood; her family, including father Bobby Ayoub and stepfather Raymond Sutton; her financial consulting career and political work; her experience working as a prostitute in Nevada and subsequent documentary about being sex trafficked and working in brothels; time spent as the first female Nevada Athletic Commissioner; and more. Digital files include audio and video files of Mike Tyson's 2002 licensure hearing, and video of Ayoub's testimony before the Nevada State Assembly Judiciary Committee for Assembly Bill 67 in 2013. There are also digitized photographs that Ayoub used for the documentary The Zen Speaker: Breaking the Silence.
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Scope and Contents Note
The Amy Ayoub Papers (1906-2022) document the life and career of Amy Ayoub, a long-time resident of Las Vegas, Nevada. The collection consists of correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings, research, and other material that document the numerous facets of Ayoub's life. The collection covers many areas: Ayoub's early childhood; her financial consulting career and political work; her experience working as a prostitute in Nevada and subsequent documentary about being sex trafficked and working in brothels; time spent as the first female Nevada Athletic Commissioner; and more. The collection also contains material from Ayoub's father, Bobby Ayoub, a Las Vegas and international card dealer; and stepfather, Raymond Sutton, a prominent attorney. Digital files include audio and video files of Mike Tyson's 2002 licensure hearing, and video of Ayoub's testimony before the Nevada State Assembly Judiciary Committee for Assembly Bill 67 in 2013. There are also digitized photographs that Ayoub used for the documentary The Zen Speaker: Breaking the Silence.
Access Note
Collection is open for research. Arrangements must be made in advance to access digital files; please contact UNLV Special Collections and Archives for additional information.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Materials are arranged by subject.
Biographical / Historical Note
Amy Ayoub is a long-time resident of Las Vegas, and has participated in political and community activism for over three decades. Amy Ayoub was born March 27, 1951 in Washington, D.C. to Robert "Bobby" Ayoub and Jane Flaherty Ayoub. Shortly after she was born, the family moved to Havana, Cuba, where her father worked as a card dealer. In 1953, the family relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada. Jane Flaherty divorced Bobby Ayoub in the late 1950s and later remarried attorney Raymond Sutton.
In 1968, Amy was sent to Caliente Girls Training Center (now Caliente Youth Center) in Caliente, Nevada. Amy graduated from high school a semester early while in Caliente, and moved to Portugal to live with her father. In February 1969, she moved back to Las Vegas and was almost immediately sex trafficked, unable to leave that life for a number of years. This continued until the summer of 1975, when Amy escaped to Monte Carlo to reunite with her father. When she returned to Las Vegas in February 1976, she began her life over and immediately started working at the Holiday Casino. It was there where she met owner Claudine Williams, who became a strong influence and close friend. Amy worked as Claudine's executive assistant until 1984. Over the next two decades, Amy volunteered and worked on various political campaigns, including with Governor (later Senator) Richard Bryan.
In 1998, Amy started Ayoub & Associates, a fundraising and financial consulting firm which she ran for 12 years. In 1999, Governor Kenny Guinn appointed Amy to the Nevada State Athletic Commission (the Boxing Commission) as the first female to hold the position. In April 2002, Ayoub resigned early from the commission after what she considered a "high point" in her career: leading the 4-1 decision against granting Mike Tyson a boxing license in Nevada. In 2010, she started The Zen Speaker, a business where she offers training and workshops on public speaking.
In February 2013, Amy testified before the Nevada State Assembly and Senate Judiciary Committees, using her personal story working "in the life" as a sex worker and prostitute, in support of Assembly Bill 67, which increased penalties for those convicted of sex trafficking. Since that time, Amy has been an advocate for legislation and programs that support victims of sex and human trafficking. She worked with Robin Greenspun to create The Zen Speaker: Breaking the Silence, a documentary about Amy's life which premiered in March 2019. As of 2023, Amy resides in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Source:
Conversation with Amy Ayoub, August 2023.
Preferred Citation
Amy Ayoub Papers, 1906-2022. MS-01157. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/f1kf64
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated in 2023 by Amy Ayoub; accession number 2023-053.
Processing Note
In 2023, Sarah Jones arranged and described the collection at the folder-level, entered the data into ArchivesSpace, and wrote the front matter description. Tammi Kim accessioned the born digital materials and Sarah Jones created access copies.
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Appraisal Note
Acquired by Visual Materials Curator, Aaron Mayes, as part of UNLV Special Collections and Archives holdings on sexual entertainment and economies, sports and gaming, and Las Vegas history.