Katya Schwenk

Burlington, Washington, D.C., United States

Journalist at Freelance

Reporter at The Lever

reporter @levernews. [email protected] // 413 658 4677 on Signal

Articles

The pros and cons of dying your hair blue

1 week ago | georgetownvoice.com | Connor Martin |Katherine Wilkison |Katya Schwenk |Kayla Hewitt

When I walked into my thesis advisor’s office with nothing new to show him but my blue hair, I took a moment to reflect. Was I contemplating fulfilling the minimum requirements to graduate with an American Studies degree? No.Responsibly, I reflected on the role of dyed hair at Georgetown. I’ve never cared much about fashion. Of course, I want to look good (and do, most days, in my rough-around-the-edges, 10 minutes late to class with a giant iced coffee sort of way).
As US Airlines Outsource Plane Repairs, Private Equity Is Moving In

2 weeks ago | truthout.org | Katya Schwenk |Inside Arabia. Katya

Angry, shocked, overwhelmed? Take action: Support independent media. We’ve borne witness to a chaotic first few months in Trump’s presidency. Over the last months, each executive order has delivered shock and bewilderment — a core part of a strategy to make the right-wing turn feel inevitable and overwhelming.
Private Equity Is Getting Into the Airplane Repair Business

2 weeks ago | jacobin.com | Katya Schwenk

Private equity firms are increasingly targeting the little-known companies that fix planes for commercial airlines — preying on an industry with already weakened oversight and further stoking aviation safety advocates’ fears. In the past, commercial airlines in the United States did the critical work of inspecting and repairing their fleets in-house, employing teams of mechanics to conduct airplane maintenance at their facilities across the country.
Wall Street Wants To Fix Your Airplane

2 weeks ago | levernews.com | Katya Schwenk

Private equity firms are increasingly targeting the little-known companies that fix planes for commercial airlines — preying on an industry with already weakened oversight and further stoking aviation safety advocates’ fears. In the past, commercial airlines in the United States did the critical work of inspecting and repairing their fleets in-house, employing teams of mechanics to conduct airplane maintenance at their facilities across the country.
Are Bail Bond Insurers Engaged in a Price-Fixing Conspiracy?

3 weeks ago | jacobin.com | Katya Schwenk

When you think of the bail industry, you’re likely to think of bail agents and their bounty hunters, who chase down fugitives released on bail for a fee, sometimes employing questionable tactics. But the true profiteers of the United States’ distinctive cash-bail system are insurance brokers, the little-known surety companies that underwrite bail bonds and often collect much of the profits.
The Secret Corporate Bounty Hunters Keeping People In Jail

4 weeks ago | levernews.com | Katya Schwenk

When you think of the bail industry, you’re likely to think of bail agents and their bounty hunters, who chase down fugitives released on bail for a fee, sometimes employing questionable tactics. But the true profiteers of the United States’ distinctive cash-bail system are insurance brokers, the little-known surety companies that underwrite bail bonds and often collect much of the profits.
Private Airlines Are Making Billions on Deportations

4 weeks ago | jacobin.com | Katya Schwenk

This month’s GOP spending bill included a $485 million budget hike for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). That likely represents a windfall for the many private vendors profiting from the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown — including the shadowy aviation contractors carrying out ICE’s deportation flights.
Inside The Billion-Dollar Business Of Deportation Flights

1 month ago | levernews.com | Katya Schwenk

This month’s GOP spending bill included a $485 million budget hike for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). That likely represents a windfall for the many private vendors profiting from the Trump administration’s ongoing immigration crackdown — including the shadowy aviation contractors carrying out ICE’s deportation flights. Keep reading for FREE. This is not a paywall. Just sign up below for a free subscription to The Lever to get access to this story and much more.
A Legal Battle Exposes the Big Business of Exploiting Prisoners for Profit

1 month ago | truthout.org | Katya Schwenk |Inside Arabia. Katya

This article was originally published by The Lever, an investigative newsroom. If you like this story, sign up for The Lever’s free newsletter. The yacht is moored at the mouth of the Miami River, in the long shadows of the city’s luxury hotels and high-rises. It is of Italian design: sleek, imposing, with a flybridge and sundeck and five cabins, and a price point of about $10 million. On the hull, bold silver lettering declares its name: Convict.
Paranoia or protection? Hoya Paranoia, John Thompson, and Black America’s team

1 month ago | georgetownvoice.com | Sydney Carroll |Ben Jakabcsin |Katya Schwenk |Rachel Cohen

Content warning: This piece includes a quoted racial slur. Entering McDonough Arena between 1972 and 1999, where Georgetown’s basketball team practiced, was a nearly impossible task. “When you came into McDonough, everything was taped up—it was like Fort Knox. The windows were taped, the doors were taped, the doors were locked,” Joey Brown (CAS ’94), a former Hoya basketball guard, said. Inside, Coach John Thompson’s basketball teams ran sprints.