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How our blog got its name

Sidney Hillman was a powerful national figure during the Great Depression, a key supporter of the New Deal, and a close ally of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

When the rumor spread that President Roosevelt ordered his party leaders to “clear it with Sidney” before announcing Harry S. Truman as his 1944 running mate, conservative critics turned on the phrase, trumpeting it as proof that the president was under the thumb of “Big Labor.”

Over the years, the phrase lost its sting and became a testament to Hillman's influence.

It's hard to imagine a labor leader wielding that kind clout today, but we like the idea—and we hope Sidney would give thumbs up to our blog.

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Lindsay Beyerstein's blog

Did a Child Slave Process Your Walmart Shrimp?

Mortgage-Servicing Corps Pocket Tornado Insurance Checks

If you have disaster insurance on a mortgaged home, chances are, any payout for storm damage will go through your mortgage-servicing company, rather than to you. As David Dayen reports, many tornado survivors in Oklahoma who were counting on insurance to cover repairs are being told they must use the money to pay down their mortgages instead. 

 Continue reading...

#Sidney's Picks: Coercive Sterilization, Courtroom Assault, and More

News highlights from the week that was:Continue reading...

Tires and Tribulations: Tire Rentals Gouge the Working Poor

Investigative journalist Ken Bensinger of the LA Times exposes yet another abuse of poor people in a car-dependent society. Well aware that their customers need tires to get to work, tire rental companies like Rent-a-Wheel and Rimco are setting up usurious rent-to-own plans for customers who are too poor to buy upfront: Continue reading...

Target: Target

How Phony Psychics Bilk Their Clients

Why Have 900 Guatemalan Bus Drivers Been Murdered?

Past Sidney winner Dave Jamieson tweeted this heartbreaking story about how driving a bus in Guatemala became one of the world's most dangerous occupations:Continue reading...

#Sidney's Picks: Moral Mondays, NYC Car Wash Workers Ratify First Union Contract

Highlights from the week's news.Continue reading...

Chicago Sun-Times Lays Off Photo Staff

The Chicago Sun-Times announced this morning that it was firing its photo department. Some 30 photographers and editors lost their jobs, three photo staffers reportedly survived the cuts but will be reassigned to new duties. From now on, the paper plans to make do with freelance contributors. 

What could possibly go wrong? Graphic designer Ian Arsenault can think of a few things, as shown above. Continue reading...