Nicholas Kristof: Google and Sex Trafficking

Why is Google defending Backpage? View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Thursday, September 7, 2017 [NYTimes.com/Kristof »]( [Inspectors looking for evidence of human trafficking at a sweat shop in San Francisco.]( Inspectors looking for evidence of human trafficking at a sweat shop in San Francisco. Jim Wilson/The New York Times [Google and Sex Trafficking]( There’s been some important progress against sex trafficking and websites like Backpage that facilitate it. But Backpage has had an unusual ally: Google. [My column today]( takes aim at what I see as Google’s behind-the-scenes role in shielding Backpage. [Read!]( By the way, a powerful documentary that puts Backpage in human terms is “[I Am Jane Doe]( It’s on Netflix. President Trump has announced the end of DACA with a six-month suspension, and put the onus on Congress to pass an immigration law. I hope Congress will do so and agree with Microsoft’s president, [Brad Smith]( that this should be a higher priority than tax reform. I also find Trump’s action cruel. If only he could show the same compassion for DACA kids, who have broken no law and entered the U.S. at an average age of 6, that he showed for a persistent law-breaker, Joe Arpaio. One window into persistent racial inequity in the criminal justice system: Ferguson, Mo. When the Justice Department wrote a scathing report about racism in Ferguson in 2014, it offered a much-publicized example of a black man, Fred Watson, who did nothing wrong and yet a white officer pointed a gun at him and wrote him a dozen tickets — for things such as not wearing a seatbelt, even though his car was parked. Usually, embarrassing publicity makes such injustices go away. But my colleague Timothy Williams finds that Ferguson [is still prosecuting]( the cases against Watson, who lost his job as a result. One of my favorite hiking trails, Eagle Creek Trail in Oregon, is the scene of a raging forest fire, and similar fires are out of control in much of the West. Houston is still emerging from catastrophic floods. And one of the strongest hurricanes ever in the Atlantic is roaring through the Caribbean toward Florida. Meanwhile, another tropical storm, Jose, is forming behind Irma. Just a reminder that pretending that climate change isn’t real doesn’t make it go away. I just finished “[My Absolute Darling]( the hot new novel that has been attracting rave reviews; Stephen King has compared it to “To Kill a Mockingbird.” It’s by a first-time novelist, Gabriel Tallent, and tells the story of a 14-year-old girl, Turtle, raised in a dysfunctional household by a paranoid, gun-loving father, who regularly rapes her. Then she meets a boy her age, and a deadly crisis ensues. It’s a searing story of abuse and damaged people, but also about resilience, strength and survival. Much recommended. And now [here’s my column]( about how Google has emerged as an unexpected ally of Backpage in its fight against the prosecutors and attorneys general trying to curb its role. Google will hate this column, but I hope this leads it to rethink its conduct. [Read!]( ADVERTISEMENT I welcome suggestions for what to include in this newsletter. You can connect with me on [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Google]( [Instagram]( and [Pinterest](. If you have friends who might enjoy this newsletter, forward this email; they can [sign up here](. Send feedback or tech questions to newsletters@nytimes.com. Recent Columns [We Don’t Deny Harvey, So Why Deny Climate Change?]( We know there’s a link, and there are things we can do to combat global warming. [The Photos the U.S. and Saudi Arabia Don’t Want You to See]( We’re complicit in the war crimes committed in Yemen by the Saudi-led military coalition. [Several hundred protesters outside the White House on Wednesday chanted, “No hate, no fear, trans students are welcome here.”]( Nicole Sganga [My Blog]( My blog, On the Ground, expands on my twice-weekly columns, sharing thoughts that shape the writing but don’t always make it into the 800-word text. It also features contributions from other writers. [Several hundred protesters outside the White House on Wednesday chanted, “No hate, no fear, trans students are welcome here.”](  [My Columns]( Explore a searchable collection of my previous columns dating back to 2001. ADVERTISEMENT FOLLOW NICHOLAS KRISTOF [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nickkristof]( [Instagram] [nickkristof]( Get more [NYTimes.com newsletters »]( | Get unlimited access to NYTimes.com and our NYTimes apps. [Subscribe »]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Nicholas Kristof newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2017 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018