DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
LightNews LightNews
dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social
DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
@dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social
49 followers 6 following 0 posts
reporter in labor, tenant rights, culture and more
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
in february, @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social wrote about the effort to ban physical mail into illinois prisons—and why it's just another way for prisons to throw money at private companies.

chicagoreader.com/news/prison-...
Ruddell says other states that switched to digitized mail haven’t seen a decrease in the amount of drugs getting in. Pennsylvania, for example, moved to scan all mail into prisons in 2018. In the years since, overdoses have continued to rise, according to the Patriot-News. The Nation reported in 2022 that the scanned mail provided to incarcerated people often includes unrecognizable pictures and missing pages. One incarcerated person told his mother to stop sending heartfelt letters and cards because he couldn’t tell what was sent. IDOC has most recently responded to the buzz on this topic in a November statement by spokesperson Naomi Puzzello saying the agency is looking into additional options to explore safety and has already shored up mail screening protocols in the meantime. “These efforts are focused on improving safety while ensuring individuals in custody maintain essential communications and family connections,” Puzzello said. Blumenberg says that personal touches in letters and cards can’t be replicated by a digital copy. “When I was incarcerated in those dark places, sometimes it’s that little, tangible letter that you have that is uniquely written in your loved one’s handwriting that you’re able to see and touch, read it and [it helps] you push through being in that dark place.” He says that letters and drawings from loved ones on the outside help incarcerated people stay engaged with their communities and improve their chances of reintegrating into society. Blumenberg also worries about the security concerns that come with a digital system. Digital mail processes can be subject to censorship, delays, surveillance, and potential data breaches. “Writing a letter to somebody and sharing your thoughts with them is one of the most intimate things you can do with somebody that’s incarcerated,” he says. “You share bits and pieces of yourself with them, and that’s personal. That’s not something that you want to share with everybody else.”
November 20, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
thecorlew.bsky.social
Friday Links is UP! Featuring two amazingly disorienting books, @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social @almacampos.bsky.social @mollydevore.bsky.social @corli.thetriibe.com @kdonhoops.com and MORE!

www.lazyandentitled.org?p=162657802
Friday Links: The Weirdest Guys Edition – Lazy & Entitled
www.lazyandentitled.org
November 14, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
new: late last month, a “make snap great again” sign appeared on the wall of an illinois department of human services office in lincolnwood.

workers claim management hung the sign after trump enacted new restrictions on food aid.

idhs denies any involvement.

via @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social:
‘Make SNAP great again’
IDHS workers speak out after an unknown employee hung a MAGA-themed sign at the Lincolnwood family community resource center.
chicagoreader.com
October 31, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
new: federal agents have targeted rideshare drivers at o'hare on at least ten separate days since october 10.

in some cases, agents returned to abduct drivers multiple times in a single day, taking as many as ten to 20 people each time.

via @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social:
‘Like shooting fish in a barrel’ - Chicago Reader
Federal agents have repeatedly terrorize rideshare drivers at O’Hare International Airport.
chicagoreader.com
November 5, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
katieprout.bsky.social
Bumping this devastating, essential reporting by @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social again. Rideshare workers, already treated terribly by the union-busting corps they work for, are being kidnapped from O'Hare as city-hired security guards watch.
mulchy.bsky.social shawn @mulchy.bsky.social · 17d
new: federal agents have targeted rideshare drivers at o'hare on at least ten separate days since october 10.

in some cases, agents returned to abduct drivers multiple times in a single day, taking as many as ten to 20 people each time.

via @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social:
‘Like shooting fish in a barrel’ - Chicago Reader
Federal agents have repeatedly terrorize rideshare drivers at O’Hare International Airport.
chicagoreader.com
November 6, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
joeengleman.bsky.social
Check out @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social's @chicagoreader.com piece about how rideshare drivers at O'Hare are being targeted. chicagoreader.com/news/border-...
‘Like shooting fish in a barrel’ - Chicago Reader
Federal agents have repeatedly terrorized rideshare drivers at O’Hare International Airport.
chicagoreader.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
new: housing advocates in chicago are calling on governor jb pritzker and mayor brandon johnson to enact a moratorium on evictions “as long as I.C.E. is in our city.”

via @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social
Chicago tenants demand eviction moratorium amid federal invasion
Housing organizers are warning against putting people out on the street “as long as ICE is in our city.”
chicagoreader.com
November 12, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
just a couple weeks ago, @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social’s @chicagoreader.com cover story explored labor issues faced by rideshare drivers and their fight for stronger protections.
Illinois rideshare drivers organize for labor rights - Chicago Reader
Uber and Lyft drivers are joining together to fight for better working conditions.
chicagoreader.com
October 20, 2025 at 11:20 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
joeengleman.bsky.social
Be sure and check out some of @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social's excellent labor reporting & updates on organizing at cultural institutions around town chicagoreader.com/news/labor/l...
Labor Pains: Second City actors ratify new contract, avert strike
Plus: raises for home and childcare workers, Northwestern postdocs demand a union, and more.
chicagoreader.com
September 1, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
chicagoreaderunion.bsky.social
Chicago Reader Union statement on Noisy Creek acquisition: The Chicago Reader Union looks forward to working with Noisy Creek. We are hopeful that Noisy Creek's acquisition will allow the Reader to thrive. Our biggest priority is ensuring we maintain staffing levels that allow us to keep putting out our best work. Despite more than eight months of financial turmoil, our members have continued to produce the quality long-form, investigative, and cultural reporting the Reader is known for. However, our future remains uncertain. In recent weeks, three valued members accepted voluntary buyouts: Ben Joravsky, Deanna Isaacs, and Shawnee Day. As of today, Noisy Creek intends to lay off additional members of our unit. At a time when news outlets in Chicago and around the country are downsizing, these departures would reduce the size of the Readers editorial department by more than 25 percent in all. We are optimistic that Noisy Creek recognizes the value of in-depth, community-centric print journalism. We look forward to bargaining with Noisy Creek to ensure our union has the resources we need so we can focus on producing quality news and culture journalism-not worrying about job security or making rent.
August 26, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
pmontoro.bsky.social
It can be hard to make sense of the Trump administration's hurricane of nihilistic destruction. This great piece by @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social for the @chicagoreader.com provides an on-the-ground picture of the damage done to Chicago orgs supporting LGBTQ+ health. chicagoreader.com/news/lgbtq-h...
LGBTQ+ health centers brace for Trump’s attacks - Chicago Reader
Chicagoland research labs and community clinics are navigating illegal funding stoppages, censorship, and increasing anti-LGBTQ+ violence.
chicagoreader.com
June 25, 2025 at 8:34 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
“We as a society are really uncomfortable holding the people we know and love accountable for that harm, so we like to point the finger at people who have been previously held accountable that we don’t know.”

this week's @chicagoreader.com cover story from @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social:
Nowhere to go - Chicago Reader
People with sex offense convictions struggle to find housing in Illinois.
chicagoreader.com
April 24, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
chicagoreader.com
In our new column Labor Pains, reporter @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social covers news affecting Illinois workers. Latest: Dispensary 33 became the first fully worker-owned cannabis shop in IL; Pritzker vetoes a bill to protect warehouse workers. More:
Dispensary 33 becomes first worker-owned pot shop in Illinois
Plus: Pritzker vetoes a bill to protect warehouse workers, Tony’s Fresh Market rejects union push, and more labor news from across the state.
chicagoreader.com
April 13, 2025 at 11:05 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
chicagoreader.com
Chicagoan Victoria Park's indie rock project @pictoriavark.bsky.social released a new album, Nothing Sticks, in March. The band performs at a release party for the album on Sun 4/13 at @theemptybottle.bsky.social | ✍️ @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social
Pictoria Vark starts a new chapter with an album about endings - Chicago Reader
Pictoria Vark celebrates the release of the project's second full-length, Nothing Sticks, with an Empty Bottle show on Sunday.
chicagoreader.com
April 11, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
mulchy.bsky.social
workers at first ascent's four chicago locations are organizing w/ the chicago & midwest regional joint board of workers united for better pay and conditions.

they're one of 23 climbing gyms to organize in recent years.

this week's @chicagoreader.com cover story via @dmbrown-tboy.bsky.social:
First Ascent staff launch union drive - Chicago Reader
Workers at the climbing gym's four Chicago locations are organizing for improved pay, staffing, and safety.
chicagoreader.com
March 13, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Reposted by DMB (Devyn-Marshall Brown)
pmontoro.bsky.social
If you can look at the U.S. right now and decide that the people we really need to worry about are *immigrants*, then I invite your dumb racist ass to fuck off into the sun.

And if you're to the right of the fucking *city council* on this, you need to study your heart. Provided you can find it.
heathercherone.bsky.social Heather Cherone @heathercherone.bsky.social · Jan 15
BREAKING: The Chicago City Council votes 39-11 to REJECT an effort to weaken Chicago’s protections for undocumented immigrants as Chicago’s immigrant communities brace for mass deportations. @wttw.bsky.social
January 15, 2025 at 7:45 PM