Profiles by VICE

In August of last year, campus preacher Brother Dean Saxton caused outrage after preaching at the University of Arizona and holding a sign that read, "YOU DESERVE RAPE." This is typical behavior for Dean, who believes, among other things, that women shouldn't be allowed to attend university, that feminism is evil, and that immodestly dressed women are asking to be raped. VICE went to Arizona to meet up with Dean as he was preparing to protest the screening of a documentary about a rape survivor.

Wildlife trafficking is estimated to be a $19 billion per year global business, surpassed only by black-market sales and trafficking of drugs, humans, and firearms. In the United States, regulation of private ownership of exotic animals is determined by each state, allowing for loopholes and oversight. Animals are bought and traded through auctions, backyard breeders, illicit online sales and more. The industry is growing right in our backyards. VICE travels to Ohio to rescue a cougar, then to Texas for an exotic livestock auction and undercover visit to gaming ranch where the animals are sold and hunted for up to $15k a piece.

Penile implants have become a popular treatment option for erectile dysfunction - a health complication that more than 30 million men suffer from in the United States alone. The surgery consists of placing an inflatable prosthesis within a man's member that is attached to a soft ball that sits in the scrotum. When the ball is pumped, the penis remains hard for as long as the man wants. Most individuals that undergo the operation are satisfied with their implant, but the unlucky 2-3% experience infections that can lead to death, mangled parts, and more. VICE visited Miami, FL to speak to one of the leading penis doctors in the country and find out what it's worth to get your penis operated on.

“Sugar Man” is a wise guy Mafioso who makes his living one quarter at a time by owning and operating small toy vending machines at supermarkets and pizzerias all over New York City. In 2004, he made over $1 million with the popular “Homies” collection. As the economy continues to bury national manufacturing jobs, VICE captures a portrait of the current state of the American blue collar working class.

Michelito Lagravere is 16 years old. The day he was born, his bullfighter father was being hit by a bull. At 4 years old, Michelito would run around his house with a towel and "fight" his pet dog. At 6 years old, he killed his first calf. At 11 he killed 6 bulls in a single day, and at age 14, officially, he turned into the youngest bullfighter ever. For this episode of VICE Profiles, we went to Merida on Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, to meet this young bullfighter, his parents, and his younger brother André "El Galo," who is following in Michelito's footsteps and is poised to become the next great bullfighter in Mexico. The Lagravere brothers aim at being the best at a tradition in Mexico that is less and less celebrated, or accepted.

Alexis Neiers, ex-heroin addict and star of cult classic reality show Pretty Wild, has had a pretty crazy life. In this episode of Profiles by VICE, we hear about Neiers's struggles with addiction, her criminal involvement in the real-life Bling Ring (the inspiration for Sophia Coppola's 2013 film of the same name), and her former Playboy Bunny mother, as well as her new role as a sober mother, attempting to help her ex-boyfriend find a way out of his own crippling heroin and crack addiction.

VICE arrives in North Dakota to witness life as America’s foremost blind outdoorsman and gun enthusiast. At 27, Carey McWilliams became the first totally blind person in the USA to acquire a conceal and carry permit. Despite weapons training during his Army ROTC years, McWilliams has faced opposition to his right to bear arms from both the media and public officials. Once a fervent antihunter, McWilliams now views hunting as a way to connect to a system greater than himself and cope with PTSD brought on by a recent violent dog attack. In his down time, he carries a loaded pistol to the grocery store.

By day, Dr. Jorge Chiu is a cardiothoracic surgeon. By night, he volunteers as a paramedic to help the violence-ridden streets of Guatemala City. There's no telling what he'll be dealing with on any given night. One moment Dr. Chiu will be dealing with a house fire—the next he'll be treating gunshot wounds.

VICE meets Matthew Lesko, the self-proclaimed federal grant researcher and informercial personality, made big by his "question mark" suit. He has written more than twenty books telling people how to get money from the US government.

VICE heads to North Dakota fracking territory to meet the new generation of young and wealthy directional drillers who are taking part in the politically loaded and controversial method of obtaining oil.

VICE investigates the community of women who support the Men's Rights Movement, many of whom identify as anti-feminists despite being women.

In 2011, an international peacekeeping force pushed al Shabaab Islamists from Somalia's capital city. The fight continues in the countryside and in Mogadishu. The weakened extremists launch periodic suicide bombs and IED attacks. For a generation, the lives of young Somalis have been obscured by the violence. Today, the fragile peace in Mogadishu allows youth to imagine a future beyond war.

Bestiality is having a weird renaissance in Europe. Perhaps ironically, it kicked off when activists succeeded in banning the practice in places like Germany and Norway. In the background, something else emerged simultaneously: an animal-sex-tourism industry, which has been blossoming in Denmark. Denmark is far from the only place you can fuck a dolphin, horse, pig, or dog. In fact, more than a dozen US states and territories legally permit some form of man-bites-dog action, including Alabama, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kentucky, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming, and Washington, DC.

While his parents were out working four jobs, Cambo spent his time learning how to survive in the rough backwoods of Alabama. When they went through a brutal divorce, he naturally fled to the woods to be alone. No traffic, no people, no responsibility—just pure survival. The plan was to wait out his adolescence there until he could legally live life without his parents. He ended up spending two years alone in the wild. This episode of Profiles by VICE, from director Harmony Korine, tells Cambo's story.

Conversion therapy is the practice of "curing" gay people by trying to turn them straight through counseling and lifestyle restrictions. In this special report, VICE gets exclusive access to one of the hundreds of gay-conversion-therapy organizations, groups, and sessions in the United States. At the Journey into Manhood program, men pay more than $600 to attend a weekend retreat where they participate in exercises and activities the staff members claim will help them battle their same-sex ­orientation. The only qualification to become a staff member is to have successfully completed the program. The report meets with the founder of reparative therapy, Dr. Joseph Nicolosi, who is illegally practicing on minors in the State of California, and investigates the controversial legal battle to fight conversion therapy for individuals under 18 years of age.

On this episode of Profiles by VICE, we meet Melissa, the unlikely astronaut, to understand what motivates a person to relocate to another, unknown planet. Having never found a reason to move from England, she now has the opportunity to make history as the first transgender person to step foot on Mars.

Paul Alexander was a young British skateboarder full of charisma and drive. He discovered the opportunities of sponsorship, travelling and recognition during a move from Leicester to Bristol in his late teens. Living with professional skateboarder Danny Wainwright he became engulfed in the fun, responsibility free lifestyle that came with his chosen pursuit of becoming a pro skateboarder. Paul seemed destined for success then something came to get him, something he’d never experienced before that would take his personal goals and freedom far away from his grasp in a seemingly never ending battle. This is his story, directed by friend and skateboarding companion Tim Crawley.

Mr Cherry is Japan's leading world record holder, his feats including everything from the quickest crab walk to crushing walnuts with his bum. VICE followed him in the run up to his biggest record breaking challenge yet.

LARPing, or live-action roleplaying, is a game in which people create characters and act out storylines within fictional worlds, in real time, in costume. We go LARPing and meet Jon Gallagher, a LARPer with Asperger's syndrome, and see how LARPing helps him make friends, learn social skills, get a job, and in many ways, saves his life.

When a charismatic former alcoholic named Shaft has his life changed by Burning Man, he realises that he actually identifies as a unicorn. No longer able to face the monotony of work and life in the real world, he decides to form a polyamorous and hedonistic movement with other like-minded unicorns. Donning glittery horns and galloping through London’s cold, monogamous streets, Shaft’s unicorns set about trying to create a free-love utopia. But as the unicorn revolution begins to clash with the realities of life and love, some of the “glampede” become disillusioned. As Shaft’s dream begins to crumble, hearts are broken, and we soon discover the real reason that everyone decided to become unicorns in the first place. Is this the hedonistic, free love revolution we were promised in the sixties, reimagined for a generation of white collar creatives?

Phil Tippett is the Oscar-winning stop-motion animator and designer behind some of the greatest fantasy creatures and sci-fi set pieces in cinema history. From his humble beginnings as an alien patron in the iconic Cantina sequence from 'Star Wars: A New Hope', to pioneering stop-motion techniques used throughout 'Empire Strikes Back' and 'Return of the Jedi', to seamlessly merging practical animation and CGI in Jurassic Park and beyond. In 'My Life in Monsters', VICE chronicles Tippett's legendary life work, illustrating the process behind his greatest creations, the emotional hardships of transitioning into Hollywood's digital revolution, and completing his return-to-form, stop-motion opus with the brutal, dystopian 'Mad God'.

Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh is a 15-year-old environmental activist who is traveling to Eugene Oregon to sue the U.S. government over the issue of climate change. Xiuhtezcatl, along with 20 other young people, claim the government has ignored climate science for too long and their lawsuit demands that nation wide action take place in order to stop climate change. Before the hearing VICE travels to Xiuhtezcatl's home in Boulder CO to learn about who he is and why he represents the next generation of environmental warriors.

Although the mainstream Mormon church abandoned polygamy over 100 years ago, many splinter groups across Utah still practice plural marriage. One such group is the Kingston Clan, known to members as The Order. The Kingstons live in Salt Lake City and run their religion like a secretive business empire. VICE meets Joe Robinson, a young man banished from The Order and trying to build a new life around his true passion: being a magician

Nina Cranstoun is one of the few female boxing promoters in the UK. Using a combination of brassy charm and the promise of exciting competitors she lures in some of the biggest underground fighters from across the country. Nina has risen above sexist attitudes along her mission to make the hyper-masculine world of amateur boxing, a little bit more spectacular.

The FLDS broke away from mainstream Mormonism in order to continue the practice of polygamy. They established the community of Short Creek along the Utah/Arizona border to follow their beliefs in isolation. In 2011, their prophet Warren Jeffs was sentenced to life in prison (plus 20 years) for sexual abuse of two of his child brides, ages 12 and 15. VICE travels to Short Creek to meet with some of the young women who escaped from the cult, who have recently to returned to the town to try to rebuild a new life there.

VICE embeds with the London branch of the Neturei Karta, a group of controversial Ultra Orthodox Jews who campaign against Zionism and for the immediate dismantling of the state of Israel. Because of their unusual views, and support of people like ex-Iranian president Ahmadinejad and groups like the Hungarian far right Jobbik party, other Jewish people often label them as extremists. Reporter Milène Larsson goes behind the closed doors of this secretive community to understand why this Jewish group's anti-Israel sentiment has led them to join Palestinians protesting Israeli occupation and burn Israeli flags.

Liam Thomas was advised never to work on a paedophile or police corruption case. He did both. In VICE.com’s latest Profiles, he talks through these cases as well as the techniques he used working as an undercover cop on cases involving drugs, firearms and homicide. In light of the recent scandals surrounding undercover policing and evidence suggesting that documents were shredded after the announcement of the Undercover Policing Enquiry, Liam explains what he saw as God’s Work within the police. He describes this as the manipulation of facts and truth to protect the establishment. After leaving the force and spending time in psychiatric institutions, Liam is now an actor and playwright. He has written a play about police corruption based on his experiences within the force, named God’s Work. He sees his old life as character acting for the Metropolitan Police.

Kim Noble is an artist with a difference – over 100 of them, in fact. After suffering childhood abuse, Kim's mind split into over a hundred distinct personalities to cope with the trauma. Over a dozen personalities are painters, including Judy the bulimic teenager, a gay man named Ken, and a mother called Patricia. While Kim was diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID) and raising her daughter Aimee, she and her various personalities began painting as a way of understanding their own complex mind. Now Aimee is at university studying law, and Kim is a world-renowned artist who exhibits her work internationally. VICE meets her on the eve of her group show in London aimed at raising awareness of mental health in art.

For years, Dajana Pospiš was a member of the National Front, a far-right, anti-Semitic, anti-LGBTQ movement that waged war on Serbia's queer community. But during a stint in prison for racial and religious discrimination, Pospiš came to accept what no one saw coming: Despite being assigned male at birth, she was a woman—and she desperately wanted to transition. After publicly coming out as a trans woman, Dajana sought acceptance and forgiveness from Serbia’s LGBTQ community—but can her new friends make peace with her violent past? VICE met up with Dajana to hear about her unique and difficult journey from neo-Nazi to coming out as a trans woman, a move she said left her “caught between two worlds.”

In 2011, Kim Ji-hun was selected by Big Hit Entertainment to train with 30 other trainees for an upcoming K-pop group. This, then unnamed group would later become the global music phenomenon, BTS. Ji-hun shared a small dorm with 6 other trainees who went on to debut as members of BTS while his life took a different turn when he was eventually cut from the final line up. VICE meets Ji-hun as he shares his first hand experience of almost being in BTS and his life after that.