This week we joined journalists, protestors and legal observers suing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Kristi Noem for federal law enforcement’s excessive use of force in the protests in Southern California.
We joined the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, the Los Angeles Press Club and several individual journalists in the suit, including Guild members.
Our suit alleges that DHS’s brutal use of force at demonstrations punishes and suppresses the exercise of First Amendment-protected rights. According to the complaint, DHS “misuse[s] . . . weaponry, including … chemical agents such as tear gas, rubber bullets, impact munitions, pepper balls, pepper spray, exploding grenades, batons, fists, and other weapons” to retaliate against protesters, legal observers, and reporters, and to create a violent spectacle the Trump Administration is using as a pretext to turn the military against Californians.
In a statement yesterday I said:
“What happened in LA isn’t just a press crackdown, it’s an assault on the rights of all Americans, especially working people. This state-sanctioned violence against journalists is meant to stop the public from learning the truth. We’re proud to join this fight to demand accountability and end impunity for DHS officers who attack the workers who power our free press.”
“Since June 6, at least seven members of our organization have been subject to use of force or suffered a serious press rights violation by DHS officers. This number doesn’t include dozens of incidents with minor amounts of tear gas or similar chemical weapons,” said Adam Rose, press rights chair of the Los Angeles Press Club. “Democracy depends on an informed public. An informed public depends on a press free to do its job without fearing violence by federal agents.”
Five years ago we joined the ACLU of Minnesota in a similar lawsuit after Minneapolis police officers murdered George Floyd and then targeted and assaulted journalists covering the protests. So far we’ve helped journalists secure more than $1.8 million in settlements and helped reform police practices and training.
We’re also following news that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Mario Guevara, a Spanish-language reporter covering a “No Kings” protest outside of Atlanta. We join the Committee to Protect Journalists’ call for Guevara’s release and for all charges to be dropped against him.
Journalism is not a crime. Police cannot attack press workers with impunity, and we’ll use every tool we have to hold power accountable, including taking DHS to court.
The NLRB is pushing to hold Pittsburgh Post-Gazette management in contempt of court, after the company’s refusal to follow an injunction. The National Labor Relations Board asked the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals to fine PG management daily unless the company follows the injunction judges issued requiring the company to restore the health insurance plan that it illegally took away from our members in 2020.
Our union has never seen something like this in our 91-year history.
“While NewsGuild workers pile up win after win, the Post-Gazette is continuing to defy federal law and play games with the court rather than give us what they owe us,” said Zack Tanner, Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh president. “Our demands to the company have been the same for years: Restore our contract, including our health care, and stop breaking the law. The Blocks and their company could have avoided this mess entirely, and now they’re going to be forced to pay the price of their wrongdoing.”
Continue to stand with our members by donating to their cause.
Two NewsGuild-CWA leaders spoke at different “No Kings” protests last weekend. Pittsburgh Striker Natalie Duleba spoke to a massive crowd about the need to speak the truth.
“There is no Post-Gazette without us, without workers,” she said. “There’s nothing in this country without the working class.” Watch her whole speech.
NewsGuild of New York President Susan DeCarava addressed protestors, saying, “It is especially troubling to me that media workers whose very job it is to hold power to account have been targeted by this administration.”
She laid out the Trump administration’s attacks on the press, including barring our members from the White House and investigations into PBS and NPR.
“But the truth is that by silencing the different perspectives that emerge from ethical, fact-based reporting, undermines a free press and risks plunging our country into an information morass,” she said.
“We are all here collectively to say that we will not stand by and allow the dissolution of our democracy,” she said. “Not in our streets and not in our workplaces.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams barred New York Daily News reporter Chris Sommerfeldt from attending press conferences and had security remove Sommerfeldt after he called out a question to the mayor during a news briefing.
Sommerfeldt’s colleagues in the Daily News Union wrote to the mayor demanding the immediate reversal of the ‘ban’ on Sommerfeldt from Adam’s weekly press conferences.
The letter states: “To ban a reporter from future press conferences for doing the very thing a press conference is designed to facilitate – asking a question – shows a flagrant disregard for the role of the press and for our colleague’s professionalism.”
NewsGuild of New York President Susan DeCarava also wrote a letter to the Adams administration. “Mr. Sommerfeldt was asking questions at the news conference, which is the actual purpose of having such events in the first place,” she wrote. “Our members have the right to ask you questions.” She joined the call for the mayor to lift the ban.
Last week I was in Montreal for the International Federation of Journalists Executive Committee meeting. IFJ supports journalists through affiliate unions around the world. It was a packed agenda and representatives came from Australia, the Middle East, Europe, Asia and North America. Both CWA Canada and The NewsGuild-CWA are members, but unfortunately, leaders from CWA Canada didn’t attend.
One of the striking reports came from the leader of the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate, the union representing media workers in Gaza and the West Bank. Naser Abu Baker said that at least 226 journalists have been killed and about 400 have been injured since the war began. With the help of UNESCO and several other journalism groups, IFJ created a media solidarity center to provide clothing, electricity and internet to journalists in Gaza. This week IFJ called for more support to establish a new media solidarity center in Gaza. You can donate to IFJ’s Safety Fund to support journalists around the world.
IFJ leaders also talked about the plan for next year’s IFJ Congress, which will be its Centenary Congress, taking place in Paris in May.
In other Guild news out of Canada, workers at Ubisoft Halifax have filed to unionize with CWA Canada after a majority of the nearly 60 staff signed union cards.
The effort follows last year’s successful union at BGS-Microsoft in Montreal and adds momentum to the growing movement of game workers organizing across Canada.
In their mission statement, workers said: “Unionizing gives us, the workers, a meaningful voice among decision-makers, a voice that will help shape the future of Ubisoft Halifax and the industry at large. Together, we will continue to build timeless experiences for players and forge a modern, compassionate, and resilient workplace for all who contribute to our craft.”
The Chicago Tribune Guild is sounding the alarm after Alden Global Capital offered buyouts to newsroom staff. The union called it a “short-term profit boost” that will harm the paper’s mission and weaken accountability journalism in one of the country’s largest cities.
Workers said on Twitter/X that “Our journalists photograph historic moments, break important news about government misconduct and keep you informed about the day to day. Buyouts will harm the newspaper’s mission and hurt our company long-term.”
The Guild urged Tribune editors to push back, saying “they know better than anyone that Chicago needs more reporting, not less.”
“The journalists in our union deserve respect. We will fight for it. And while we do that, we will keep working for Chicago.”
Unit leaders at the ACLU of Washington, D.C. were reinstated to their jobs last week after hundreds of supporters made calls, sent emails and supported our members, who are part of the Washington-Baltimore News Guild.
Together, we made our message loud and clear: union rights are civil rights! Now, workers will push forward to win their first contract.
The Minnesota NewsGuild is hiring an Executive Officer to lead operations, negotiate contracts, support organizing and help guide the NewsGuild’s second-oldest local, rooted in 90+ years of labor history. The position is based in the Twin Cities and represents workers across journalism, healthcare, nonprofits and more – including the Minnesota Star Tribune. The position would be based in St. Paul, starting in August and has a salary range between $90,000 and $105,000. See the full job posting and apply here.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the LA Press Club are hosting a protest safety webinar for journalists covering civil unrest. This training will cover situational awareness, police tactics, protective gear and more. The training will be led by CPJ’s chief safety strategist, Colin Pereira, a longtime advisor to journalists reporting in high-risk environments.
Topic: Protest Safety Training with the Committee to Protect Journalists
When: Monday, June 23 1-2:30 p.m. ET
Register for this webinar here.
In Solidarity
Jon Schleuss
President, The NewsGuild-CWA