Statements
IWW FJU Condemns Attacks on Journalists Reporting in Iraq
On the 23rd of August 2024, a Turkish targeted drone strike hit a car carrying three journalists in the Seyidsadiq district of Sulaymaniyah. Gulîstan Tara and Hêro Bahadîn, were killed and Rebin Baker was injured. Tara was a reporter and Hêro was a video editor. Both were working for CHATR, a production company based in Kurdistan on assignment for Sterk TV, a Norwegian outlet, at the time they were killed.
Following the attack, various media outlets alleged the reporters were members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) but provided no evidence that they were members at the time of their killing. Meeting with sources who may not be aligned with the interests of the states we call home is an integral part of journalism and in no way warrants the targeting of reporters.
The targeting of women who fearlessly raised their voices to document the truth in a region where misogyny has been widespread is also unacceptable. Targeting journalists represents an attack on the truth, and we join numerous other unions and media organizations in condemning this wanton act of state violence.
This is not the first drone strike on journalists in Kurdistan by the Turkish government. Murad Mirza Ibrahim, an employee with the Kurdish media outlet Cira TV, was also killed in a drone strike a month ago. The Jurdiustan Autonomous Region of Iraq is becoming an increasingly dangerous region for the press, and we stand in solidarity with our fellow workers there demanding safer conditions and an end to targeted strikes.
Attacks on the press are unacceptable, and the pattern of targeted drone strikes on our fellow workers constitutes an attack on all of us and our ability to work safely and report the truth. The IWW FJU stands in solidarity with Hero and Tara’s families in their call for justice, and the people of Kurdistan in their calls for peace and an end to the drone war. An injury to one is an injury to all!
IWW FJU Shares Model Contract for Freelancers to Reference
The Industrial Workers of the World Freelance Journalists Union, with the support of Framework Law, has created a new model contract for freelance journalists to reference in the course of their individual negotiations with commissioning editors. The model contract is a publicly available resource, providing a reference point of contract terms to help protect freelancers when engaging with commissioning editors and to support more favorable working conditions. That said, please be aware that this contract is not legal advice. You can download the contract from our Resources page.
The IWW FJU encourages all freelancers to share, download, modify, and use the model contract as they see fit. Freelancers can compare the model contract to those they are provided with by commissioning editors, thereby helping freelancers judge the quality of the terms presented by the publication. The model contract also provides provisions that freelancers may want to request from commissioning editors — or in cases where commissioning editors provide an inadequate contract or no contract at all, freelancers may also want to request adoption of the entire model contract.
The model contract is one part of the IWW FJU’s emerging contract campaign. If you would like to get involved, please contact the IWW FJU at freelancejournalists+outreach@iww.org.
In Solidarity with Journalists in Los Angeles Reporting on Protests Against Israeli Real Estate Sales
The Industrial Workers of the World Freelance Journalists Union condemns the targeted violence against journalists reporting on protests in Los Angeles on June 23. Several journalists, including Jewish ones, reporting on the protests against Israeli real estate sales were attacked, harassed and had their equipment damaged or stolen by Zionist extremists, while filming those extremists assaulting protesters. Several journalists were targeted online before the protest, some of whom were later assaulted or harassed. In other words: This was a blatant, calculated attempt to harm journalists and undermine press freedom.
The IWW FJU also condemns the vile threats of sexual assault and violence by Zionists against women journalists in particular. The targeting of women should have no place anywhere — not in Los Angeles nor in Gaza. Any failure by elected officials to acknowledge as much contributes to further violence in the future. No journalist should experience unsafe working conditions, especially when elected officials claim to support the freedom of the press.
The IWW FJU condemns statements made by President Joe Biden, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other politicians who falsely described yesterday’s violence as “anti-Semitism,” which sets a dangerous precedent justifying violence towards both journalists and protesters. The protests on June 23 were organized against real estate sales in Israel and Israeli-occupied Palestine, not against Judaism. Failure to acknowledge Zionist violence is a cowardly stance that continues to fuel assaults against reporters and others, both in the United States and Palestine.
The ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza has murdered entire family lines and resulted in the largest mass-killing of reporters in history. We have an obligation to our Palestinian colleagues to stand against the ongoing violence to their communities, whether through bombs or real estate transactions.
The IWW FJU stands in solidarity with our fellow journalists who were attacked, harassed and targeted. We call on elected officials to overcome their cowardice and condemn such violence. We also call on other labor unions, media organizations and independent journalists to stand against this calculated assault on the press and press freedoms. News outlets in particular should cease framing such violence as “anti-Semitic” and instead acknowledge Zionist violence against reporters and protesters alike. Journalists affected by these events should contact the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker to report their experiences. Any journalists seeking further resources should contact us directly at freelancejournalists@iww.org.
As always, we echo the perennial motto of the IWW: An injury to one is an injury to all!
Strike for Palestine on May Day and Nakba Day
On April 11, the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions issued a call to action, asking workers around the world to strike in solidarity with workers in Palestine on May Day (May 1) and Nakba Day (May 15).
The Industrial Workers of the World Freelance Journalists Union commits to striking on both days. These solidarity strikes will consist of members refraining from any sort of commissioned labor that is unrelated to the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Instead, IWW FJU members will participate in local actions in solidarity with Palestinians. Other unpaid journalistic work amplifying these actions, such as social media coverage, is encouraged for all.
We ask Fellow Workers in other sections of the IWW, and workers more generally, to organize strikes, sick-outs and similar labor-withholding actions on May Day and Nakba Day. We also ask other, non-labor-related organizations to call for a “Day of Action” or similar event on both days to encourage their members to get involved, however possible, in local actions in solidarity with Palestinians.
As always, we echo the perennial IWW motto: An injury to one is an injury to all!
Solidarity with Yemeni Journalists Syndicate
In the face of the ongoing Saudi-led war in Yemen and the recent escalation of airstrikes by the United States and others, the Industrial Workers of the World Freelance Journalists Union calls for solidarity with Yemeni journalists as they work perilously to cover the conflict.
For a decade now, Saudi Arabia, with US support, has led an assault on the Yemeni people as punishment for the 2014 Houthi uprising. Despite recent attempts at normalization with Saudi Arabia, Houthi attacks on cargo vessels in the Red Sea — carried out in opposition to Israel’s ongoing genocide of Palestinians in Gaza — have led to intensified retaliatory strikes by the US and its allies, further endangering both Yemeni civilians and the journalists working to catalog violence in the war-torn nation.
IWW FJU deplores the killing of journalists both inside and outside of war zones, and stands in solidarity with the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate (YJS), an affiliate of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), as well as with professional and citizen journalists in Yemen more broadly. IWW FJU encourages all who are able to chip in to help protect journalists in Yemen by donating to YJS via IFJ: donorbox.org/donation-to-the-ifj-safety-fund (Should be sent with the comment “For the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate”)
As always, we echo the perennial IWW motto: An injury to one is an injury to all!