Politics

Staffer Ryan Smith says goodbye to the Reader

by Ryan Smith on October 18, 2018 at 5:15PM

I've also joined the fray of a French labor riot (and got teargassed in the process), snuck into the quasi-wilderness of Rezkoville multiple times and drank a beer with a homeless couple camped inside of it, speed-dated on the Navy Pier Ferris Wheel, explored creepy caves and cemeteries in southern Illinois, wrote a 7,000 word feature based on a strange AirBnB I stayed in, got elbowed by someone dressed as a T-Rex at a porn convention, and nearly had Stormy Daniels's bra thrown at my face while covering her strip show at the Admiral Theatre on Trump's birthday. I'll be forever grateful to former Reader editor in chief Jake Malooley and associate editor Gwynedd Stuart for taking a chance on someone who was once more likely to end up at Christianity Today than a big-city alternative weekly.

Rauner and Pritzker tout government transparency while blocking access to records

by Mick Dumke on October 18, 2018 at 2:08PM

From January 2017 through this June, the governor's office received more than 500 requests for records under the state Freedom of Information Act, according to a log released to me in response to a FOIA request. The log shows the office received requests from journalists, unions, businesses, and independent citizens who wanted copies of the everything from Rauner's schedule to e-mails from first lady Diana Rauner.

Where and what to vote for this midterm election in Chicago

by Maya Dukmasova on October 15, 2018 at 10:00PM

Although the election is on November 6, you can already vote now. Early voting in Chicago is happening only at 175 W. Washington in the Loop until October 21.

Making All Black Lives Matter: Barbara Ransby talks politics and protesting in 2018

by Julia Hale on October 10, 2018 at 6:00AM

"Black feminist organizing is situated within a larger political context, and the reason I think it's important is not just because I'm a black woman but it's that the politics of intersectionality are radically inclusive politics, and they're radical politics in the sense of they get to the root of injustices, multiple injustices, not just single issues. And so in that sense, it is a set of politics that promises transformative change if we embrace it.

In a face-off against Pritzker, Rauner tries a little Reagan-style voodoo economics

by Ben Joravsky on October 8, 2018 at 6:00AM

Don't feel bad, Craig—you're not alone. Dozens of reporters have unsuccessfully asked Pritzker a variation on your question for the better part of the last year.

Indivisible Chicago’s Blue Wave Rave uses improv to mobilize political action

by Julia Hale on October 5, 2018 at 6:00AM

, we got people focused on different projects, one of them being Take Back the House. That was the beginning of a larger effort that we've been working on all year to mobilize our folks behind progressive candidates throughout the region."

Rauner vs. Kavanaugh—who's the biggest fraud?

by Ben Joravsky on October 1, 2018 at 6:00AM

Sample comment from Kavanaugh's judiciary hearing testimony: "I'm not questioning that Dr. Ford may have been sexually assaulted . . .

Chicago Votes launches Give a Shit Weekend to get young people in Chicago excited about election season

by Julia Hale on September 28, 2018 at 4:10PM

Voter registration is available and encouraged at every event. "Every night we're asking people to register to vote as they sign in and fill out one of our pledge-to-vote cards."

Here's hoping that the myth of the bad teacher is finally laid to rest

by Ben Joravsky on September 24, 2018 at 6:00AM

Walter Payton, the seven best-performing high schools are all charters." Or when the Tribune editorialized that local charter schools outscored their neighborhood counterparts even though they didn't. Once you've turned teachers into scapegoats, everything falls into place.

With Bill Daley running for mayor, it’s good to remember what happened the last time we turned Chicago over to the Daleys

by Ben Joravsky on September 17, 2018 at 1:09AM

In Bill Daley's case, his mayoral announcement seems like some bizarre experiment to determine whether the Chicago electorate has developed a case of political dementia. Bill Daley is banking on us having forgotten what happened the last couple times we turned Chicago over to a Daley.

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