Fargo Rallies On Behalf Of Imprisoned Journalist
People In North Dakota And Minnesota Show Support For Roxana Saberi
© Jon Pike
May 2, 2009
People in the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan area in North Dakota and Minnesota have been rallying in support of a journalist imprisoned in Iran. Roxana Saberi had been a standout student at Fargo North High School and Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. She had even been a Miss North Dakota Pageant Winner. Her post-college academic career included two Master’s Degrees at Northwestern University. Her Iranian heritage helped her land a job working for a new bureau for the broadcast news service called Feature Story News which syndicated reports to various world-wide news agencies. It was while working for this agency that she first started getting in trouble with the Iranian government.
Saberi's Arrest And Imprisonment By The Iranian Government
In 2003, Saberi had her credentials revoked by the government for the first time and her employer was closed down. She received a second press credential from the government and freelanced for several news organizations. This second press credential was revoked by the government in 2006, but Saberi stayed in Iran to write a book and continue her freelance work.
Saberi holds both Iranian and United States citizenship. Her father, North Dakota resident, Reza Saberi, says he last heard from his daughter in February of 2009. She had been held in detention for several periods in February of this year. She was formally arrested on charges of espionage and convicted in March of operating as a journalist without proper press credentials.
Fargo And Moorhead Show Support For Saberi
Her hometown has turned out on behalf of Saberi. Facebook has been used to rally people to her cause. Today, May 2, 2009 marks the occasion of a rally on her behalf on the bridge that spans the Red River and connects the cities of Fargo and Moorhead. Among the speakers who are turning out on Saberi’s behalf are:
- Concordia College Dr. Pamela Jolicoeur
- North Dakota Governor John Hoeven
- Fargo Mayor Dennis Walaker
- US Congressman Earl Pomeroy
- North Dakota Newspaper Assocation Executive Director -- Roger Bailey
- Scott Hennen- The Flag- 1100 AM / North Dakota Broadcasters Assn.
- Joel Heitkamp- KFGO
- Daron Selvig KVLY / KXJB / Valley News Live
- Catherine McMullen, Concordia Journalism Professor
- Mitch Marr North Dakota Human Rights Committee Executive Director
The line-up shows how the academic and media communities in the area are showing their support for Saberi and her family. The line-up also includes conservatives, liberals, Republicans, and Democrat. They all want one of their own released from incarceration. The websites for both Feature Story News and the Miss North Dakota pageant have posted calls for Saberi's freedom on their websites.
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