Columbia University Press

The following is an interview with Stephanie Hepburn, coauthor (with Rita Simon) of Human Trafficking Around the World: Hidden in Plain Sight (For more on the book, you can also watch a video of Stephanie Hepburn discussing the book.):

Question: What made you interested in writing about the topic of human trafficking?

Stephanie Hepburn: I moved to New Orleans in February 2006, not long after Hurricane Katrina. Just like any place in any country that experiences a natural disaster, the infrastructure was disrupted, the population was in flux and law enforcement personnel were overextended. In order to rebuild the city there was a sudden demand for low-wage labor, which created an ideal scenario for labor exploitation and human trafficking. Further compounding the scenario is that the United States government temporarily suspended numerous protections for workers that affected wages, safety and health. Also, the government temporarily suspended immigration-enforcement requirements. These temporary suspensions compounded the situation and allowed illicit contractors to move in, and bring in and exploit workers unnoticed.

This is actually where the latter part of the book title (Hidden in Plain Sight) came from: the workers were exploited out in the open, but they were hidden in plain sight because no one was paying attention to the exploitation. I first began to research the human trafficking cases in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region and after seeing the common patterns I added the entire U.S. and 23 other nations.

Q: What do you want to accomplish with this book?

SH: I wrote the book to attract a broad audience and be accessible to anyone – whether an academic, expert in the field or a layperson who happens to be curious about the topic. I wanted to bring about improved awareness and understanding of all forms of human trafficking. When most people think of human trafficking they think of sex trafficking. They aren’t incorrect but that certainly isn’t the entire picture. In fact, the International Labour Organization estimates that 68 percent of the 20.9 million victims of human trafficking are forced labor victim, while 22 percent are victims of forced sexual exploitation. The remaining victims are in state-imposed forms of forced labor. To me, all of these victims are forced labor victims and it doesn’t serve any positive purpose to differentiate — it simply results in disparate laws and treatment.

I also wanted to tell the stories of victims and strike a balance between humanizing the experience and giving essential statistical data. Many of the books that I have read on human trafficking tend to go in one direction or the other. I aimed to achieve both. To me, the statistics are necessary for giving as close to an accurate image as possible of the extent of human trafficking, while the stories are the glue and heart of the book. They prohibit reader detachment and give a clear image of what victims experience from beginning to end.

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The following video is from Stephanie Hepburn’s recent talk at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Ethics to discuss her book, co-authored with Rita Simon, Human Trafficking Around the World: Hidden in Plain Sight :

In the following interview with Fronteras, Robert J. Durán, author of Gang Life in Two Cities: An Insider’s Journey, talks about his new book as well as his experiences interviewing members of Latino gangs in Denver, Colorado and Ogden, Utah.

In the interview, Durán also describes his life as a member of a gang while also looking at larger issues, including the societal conditions that lead people to join gangs and the role of persistent racism in American society.

Writing for The Atlantic, Andrew Cohen named The Making of Lee Boyd Malvo: The D.C. Sniper , by Carmeta Albarus and Jonathan H. Mack, as one of The Best 2012 Books About Justice.

Here’s what Andrew Cohen wrote about the book:

I read and wrote about this book in early October, around the same time that Malvo gave a series of well-publicized media interviews on the 10th anniversary of the Beltway shootings. There are young people everywhere in the world who endured worse from their parents than Malvo did, but who did not become the killer he did. But if you want a sense of the damage a broken life can create for innocent victims decades later, read this book.

For more on The Making of Lee Boyd Malvo, here is a recent interview with the authors on Due Process:

We continue our week-long feature on The Making of Lee Boyd Malvo: The D.C. Sniper with an interview with Jonathan H. Mack, Psy.D. Mack is a forensic psychologist and in the book he identifies and analyzes the underlying clinical psychological and behavioral processes that led to Malvo’s dissociation and turn toward serial violence.

Question: Dr. Mack, what can we learn from the Malvo case and the fact that these types tragic mass murders continue?

Jonathan Mack: I think that one critical point is that there are a large number of mentally disturbed juvenile and young adult individuals, predominately males but also females, whose mental disorders are either unidentified or poorly treated. These tragedies emphasize that mental and psychological disorders are every bit as life-threatening and devastating to our society as medical disorders, and that mental health care needs to have absolutely full parity with medical care . The cost to society is just too great not to implement this.

Q: What are some of the specific steps we as a nation can take to help curtail this epidemic of murders by disturbed people?

JM: Just about every police and public safety officer is required to pass a psychological examination and psychological testing prior to being cleared to carry a gun. I think we as a nation must consider mandatory psychological testing and evaluation prior to clearing any citizen to carry firearms, possibly with a background check that reveals prior mental health treatment and a full medication list. If you scratch the surface of the individuals who commit mass murders you will find that a lot them were on psychiatric medication, and specifically SSRI or SNRI-type antidepressants, at the time of the commission of those crimes. These medications have black box warning labels that these medications may significantly increase the risk of violent behavior (suicidal or homicidal) in young people.

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We continue our feature on They Wished They Were Honest: The Knapp Commission and New York City Police Corruption, with an interview with the book’s author, Michael F. Armstrong.

In the interview, Michael Armstrong describes the1970-72 Knapp Commission investigation into police corruption, prompted by the New York Times‘ report on whistleblower cop Frank Serpico. He also talks about how the commission affected the NYPD’s public image, what leads to police corruption, and the toll it takes on society.

Police corruption, prostitution, and illegal gambling are all revealed in this CBS news report from 1971 on the Knapp Commission, which uncovered rampant corruption in the New York Police Department . The chief counsel for the commission was Michael Armstrong, author of They Wished They Were Honest: The Knapp Commission and New York City Police Corruption .

As background, below is an excerpt from the CBS news report, in which an officer discusses how various plainclothes policeman were on the take. The clip also includes a short interview with Xaviera Hollander (aka Madame X and The Happy Hooker)

And for more background, here is the trailer for Serpico (1973), which starred Al Pacino as Frank Serpico. Serpico’s contribution to a New York Times story on the police as well as his testimony to the Knapp Commission revealed the depth of the corruption in the New York City Police Department.

This week’s featured book is They Wished They Were Honest: The Knapp Commission and New York City Police Corruption, by Michael F. Armstrong.

Throughout the week we will highlight aspects of They Wished They Were Honest: The Knapp Commission and New York City Police Corruption and we are also offering a FREE copy of the book to one winner.

To enter our book giveaway, simply e-mail pl2164@columbia.edu with your name and address (U.S. and Canadian mailing addresses only, unfortunately). We will randomly select one winner on Friday at 1:00 pm. Good luck and spread the word!

Michael B. Mukasey, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1988 – 2006
said of They Wished They Were Honest: The Knapp Commission and New York City Police Corruption:

In this account, both colorful and accurate, of New York City’s police corruption scandals uncovered by the Knapp Commission in the 1970′s, Michael Armstrong … has told not only a tautly drawn and engaging story, but also a cautionary tale for our own time. The characters — Frank Serpico, the Mayflower Madam, Detective Robert Leuci — leap from the page; the lesson — that constant supervision and vigilance are necessary to assure honesty in those who enforce the law — resonates in every chapter.

Save 30% on selected titles in Criminology and Crime.

To receive the discount use the code CRIM in the “Enter Coupon Code” field at checkout and then click apply.

Sale ends February 15, 2012.

Titles on sale include:

Addressing Rape Reform in Law and Practice
Susan Caringella

The Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation: Street Politics and the Transformation of a New York City Gang
David C. Brotherton and Luis Barrios

Gangs and Society: Alternative Perspectives
Edited by Louis Kontos, David C. Brotherton, and Luis Barrios

Genetic Justice: DNA Data Banks, Criminal Investigations, and Civil Liberties
Sheldon Krimsky and Tania Simoncelli

Global Vigilantes
Edited by David Pratten and Atryee Sen

History of the Mafia
Salvatore Lupo

Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery
Siddharth Kara