You don’t have to dredge the backwaters of the Internet to find underage girls sold for sex online. Take a tour of the commercial sex trade’s most recent marketplace, hidden in plain view.
Neena Satija
Neena Satija worked at the Tribune from 2013 to 2019. She was an investigative reporter and radio producer for the Tribune and Reveal, a public radio program from the Center for Investigative Reporting. Previously, she was the environment reporter at the Tribune. A native of the Washington, D.C. area, she graduated from Yale University in 2011, and then worked for the New Haven Independent, the Connecticut Mirror, and WNPR/Connecticut Public Radio. She has also been a regular contributor to National Public Radio. As an East Coast transplant she is particularly thrilled with Austin tacos and warm weather.
Posted in
Sold Out
How hollow rhetoric and a broken child welfare system feed Texas’ sex-trafficking underworld
Texas leaders have publicly battled sex trafficking for more than a decade, but they’ve devoted hardly any resources to helping victims.
Posted in
Sold Out
In their own words: How Texas pimps recruit and sell girls for sex
Texas Tribune reporters talked to three convicted traffickers to try to understand the power they wield over victims and the attraction of what they call “the lifestyle.” Here they are in their own words.
Posted in
Politics
Texas vs. the Feds — A Look at the Lawsuits
Since President Obama took office in 2009, the state of Texas has sued his administration at least 48 times. Here’s a look at each of those cases.
Posted in
Bordering on Insecurity
Small steps aim to lessen exploitation of Texas construction workers
In Houston and Austin, some builders are voluntarily trying to ensure that construction workers are paid well and their safety is protected.
Posted in
Protecting the Coast
Boomtown, Flood Town: Unchecked development and the risks for Houston
Rapid development continues in Houston, creating some economic gains but also contributing to flood risks. This project, done in partnership with ProPublica, looks at those risks and the debate over what to do.
Posted in
Health care
Across Texas, growing clusters of unvaccinated children
Even though statewide levels of vaccinations remain high, public health officials are increasingly worried about the geographic areas where parents are choosing not to vaccinate their children.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
In county where Sandra Bland died, sheriff is re-elected
Democrat Cedric Watson had hoped to become Waller County’s first black sheriff, but he lost by a wide margin to incumbent Glenn Smith, a Republican.
Posted inState Government
Texas county where Sandra Bland died may elect first black sheriff
More than a year after Sandra Bland’s death put this little Texas town in the national spotlight, Democrats here hope to put it back there by electing the area’s first black sheriff.
Posted inState Government
After a Supreme Court Setback, Texas Ultimately Wins Fair Housing Lawsuit
A year after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a lawsuit against Texas over segregated housing to go forward, a federal district judge has dismissed it.