Sex Work
Andrew Yang Is Wrong About Prostitution
The Democratic presidential candidate wants to keep prostitution customers criminalized while "decriminalizing sex work on the part of the seller."
'Good Moral Character' Clause for Immigrants Gives Too Much Discretion to Federal Agents
Adultery and prostitution outweigh spousal and child abuse in USCIS guidelines, but ultimately the call is made on a case-by-case basis.
Ro Khanna Hopes This Bill Will Pave the Way to Repealing FOSTA
Since FOSTA passed in 2018, "sex workers have faced increased violence" and "have been forced onto the streets," the California congressman says.
Ashley Judd and Seth Meyers Say They Want to Help Sex Workers. They Could Start by Shutting Up.
Plus: climate change defamation suit can proceed, trade deal inches forward, and more…
The FBI Rebrands Its Sex Worker Harassment Campaign
Operation Independence Day is just Operation Cross Country by a different name.
'This Is a Culture War': Sex Work Decriminalization Bill in D.C. Draws 14 Hours of Passionate Public Testimony
From morning till past midnight, supporters and opponents of a bill to decriminalize prostitution offered starkly different visions of safety and rights.
Warren Says She's 'Open to Decriminalizing Sex Work'; Klobuchar Still Says No Way
Plus: Democrats talk LGBTQ equality, California cracks down on mini-shampoo, and more...
Students Build Virtual Reality Massage Parlor for Cops
You know, to "fight human trafficking."
Judge Poised to Reject Suit by 90 'Jane Does' Who Say Salesforce Is Responsible for Sex Trafficking
The cases hinges on two laws—FOSTA and Section 230—that have been hotly contested in recent years.
Elizabeth Nolan Brown Talks About the Secret Backpage Memos and What They Mean for Free Speech Online
Politicians accused the site of victimizing women and children. A federal investigation found otherwise.
Secret Memos Show the Government Has Been Lying About Backpage All Along
Sealed memos fought over in federal court last week show authorities have known for years that claims about Backpage were bogus.
FBI Rebrands National Sex Sting as 'Operation Independence Day'
The operation is still arresting sex workers and calling it a rescue mission.
Ashton Kutcher Helped Promote a Bogus Sex Trafficking Claim. Will We Ever Shake It?
The claim that 100,000 to 300,000 underage people were being sex trafficked in the United States was used in effort to destroy Backpage.com's founders.
Selling Drugs to Sex Workers Could Be Human Trafficking Under the Senate's New 'PROTECT Act'
The bipartisan bill says "using drugs or illegal substances to cause a person to engage in a commercial sex act" or in any kind of labor counts as human trafficking.
Backpage Prosecutors Want to Seize Assets First, Answer Questions Later
Aggressive asset forfeiture collides with First Amendment rights.
The War on Backpage.com Is a War on Sex Workers
The government's latest moral crusade shields traffickers, empowers pimps, and undermines free speech online.
D.C. Sex Workers Want Decriminalization—and City Council Members Agree
'We know what we want to do with our bodies, and we don't need government interference.'
Consenting To Be Paid for Sex Is Still Consenting!
Statists, both in and out of government, like to play Kafkaesque games with the idea of consent.
A Retired NYPD Officer Pleads Guilty to Running a Prostitution Ring
The operation used its intimate knowledge of NYPD operations to thrive.
The Sex Trafficking Panic
"The victims are the sex workers…getting harassed and locked up in cages by the cops."
Stossel: Moral Panic Over Sex Work
Police often accuse people of "sex trafficking." Usually, it’s simply prostitution.
Florida Is Creating a New Sex Offender Registry Just for Prostitution Customers
The bill also targets strip clubs
Massage Parlor Surveillance Videos Can't Be Used in Court, Says Florida Judge
Plus: the biggest trouble with Devin Nunes' Twitter lawsuit, the Senate fails to override Trump's Yemen veto, bad news for the gig economy, and more...
Nabbing Robert Kraft Helped Florida Prosecutors Get Headlines. Now Kraft and Other Orchids of Asia Customers Are Fighting Back
They're joined by an arrested spa owner and manager in fighting the release of surveillance video, with an array of big media companies on the other side.
Harris Clarifies That She Does Not Support Prostitution Decriminalization, Would Use Executive Power To Toughen Gun Laws
Plus: Ohio moves to ban kids in drag shows while Washington wants to keep kids in car seats through middle school.
Foggy Sex Trafficking Stats Pop Up in the Bay Area
Did San Francisco really see a 170 percent "spike in human trafficking" last year?
What Brothels Can Teach All of Us About Risk
Allison Schrager's An Economist Walks Into a Brothel demystifies sex work, big-wave surfing, horse-breeding, and other high-risk professions.
An Economist Walks Into a Brothel: What Prostitutes and Big-Wave Surfers Can Teach Us About Risk
Allison Schrager wants to change the way you take chances.
FOSTA's First Test Targets Cloud Company Used by Backpage
Plus: a Robert Kraft/spa-sting update, Florida sex-buyer registry nixed, D.C. activist alleges entrapment, and more sex-work and sex-policy news.
Feds Say Ohio Vice Cop Andrew Mitchell Abducted Women and Forced Them Into Sex
Authorities wouldn't say whether the charges related to Donna Dalton, who was shot to death by Mitchell last August.
Sneak-and-Peek Warrant for Hidden Cameras at Florida Massage Parlors Faces Scrutiny
We were told this sort of spying would only be used to stop terrorists. And yet...
Homeland Security and Florida Cops Spied on Chinese Massage Workers for Months but Still Couldn't Find Evidence of Human Trafficking
Nine women face felony prostitution charges and hundreds of their customers have been arrested. Florida says it's the real victim.
Kamala Harris Won't Denounce Federal Law That Harms Sex Workers, but May Support Decriminalizing Prostitution
"I think that we have to understand though that it is not as simple as that."
'No Allegations of Human Trafficking' and 'Women Could've Walked Out' In Florida Massage-Parlor Prostitution Stings
Authorities are walking back big claims about an international human-trafficking ring involving Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Patriots Owner Robert Kraft's Bust Is Being Billed as a Human Trafficking Bust, but It Looks More Like Ordinary Prostitution
It's also part of a larger national attack on massage parlors and sex workers.
Last Year Saw 'Furthest-Reaching Attempt to Censor Online Speech' Since the 1990s, Say FOSTA Challengers
As the lawsuit against FOSTA hits appeals court, three essays about the law that everyone should read.
Sex-Trafficking Hysteria Is Eroding Privacy in Hotels, Airplanes, and More: Podcast
Elizabeth Nolan Brown talks about DHS's "Blue Campaign," which is pushing hotel and airline workers to call the feds if they suspect human trafficking.
Are You a Woman Traveling Alone? Marriott Might Be Watching You.
How big hotel chains became arms of the surveillance state.
Kamala Harris Hopes You'll Forget Her Record as a Drug Warrior and Draconian Prosecutor
The senator and presidential hopeful went to bat for dirty prosecutors, opposed marijuana legalization, and championed policies that endanger sex workers.
Nastya Rybka Freed From Russian Jail After Vowing Not to Leak More Dirt on Deripaska
After months imprisoned in Thailand, the Belarusian citizen was deported to Moscow and promptly arrested on charges of luring people into prostitution.
Hello, FIRST STEP Act! Goodbye, Jeff Sessions! The Year in Criminal Justice Reform
2018 was a mixed bag, but that means there was still a lot of good news.
Congress Ramps Up War on Sex Workers and Their Customers With Secret Votes on Four New 'Protection' Laws
A national strategy for arresting sex buyers and letting local cops wiretap sex workers are among the approved changes.
Sex Workers Around the World Demand Decriminalization: Reason Roundup
Plus: Obamacare unconstitutional?
Human Trafficking Grant Goes to Arrest Suspected Victims in Tucson
A Tucson Weekly investigation finds that federal funds to "fight sex trafficking" are actually perpetuating it.
The #ThotAudit Is Deeply, Painfully Stupid
The snitch crusade is ostensibly about making sure hot women aren't making money off their hotness without giving the government a cut.
