The Epstein Files and Me-Too

The photo is of the heroic journalist Julie K. Brown

NANCY LINDISFARNE and JONATHAN NEALE report:

This article says four important things about the Epstein files.

First, though all the talk is about conspiracy theories, this case is of a piece with the cover-ups of the abuse of gymnasts by Larry Nasser; the cover-ups of generations of abuse in residential schools for indigenous children in Canada, the consistent cover-ups by the Catholic Church; the cover-up of the Smythe case by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and hundreds and thousands of other cover-ups by institutions all over the world. This is not some bizarre conspiracy. It is what the rich and powerful do.

Second, this is not just about Donald Trump. This cover up started way before Trump, and it goes way beyond Trump. Third, the liberal and centre mainstream media are unable to talk sensibly about any of this because the Democratic Party has been part of the cover-up. Fourth, as with almost other every abuse and Me Too case, this one came to light because brave survivors fought back.

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How Neoliberalism Transformed Sex Work in the United States

Nancy Lindisfarne and Jonathan Neale

A 16 minute read.

The sociologist Elizabeth Bernstein did fieldwork with sex workers in San Francisco between 1994 and 1998.[1] By her estimate, 20% of sex workers in the city in 1994 worked on the streets. Four years later, 2% of sex workers walked the streets and 98% worked indoors. The city had been ‘cleaned up’. But there were more sex workers, they were often well educated, they made more money, and they were providing an emotionally different kind of sex.   

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