SAG-AFTRA Condemns the Arrest of Iranian Actors and Other Protestors

SAG-AFTRA today released the following statement regarding the arrest of Iranian actors Hengameh Ghaziani and Katayoun Rishi, and other protesters:

"Recently, two prominent Iranian actors, Hengameh Ghaziani and Katayoun Riahi, were arrested for publicly removing their headscarves in a show of solidarity with protesters. They were just two of the countless people who have been arrested, harassed and killed by the Iranian government since unrest broke out after the death of Mahsa Amini, who is believed to have been beaten to death by Iran's so-called morality police.

"Two months earlier, the Iranian government sentenced two women to death for supporting LGBTQ rights.

"SAG-AFTRA stands in support of the two actors, the activists, all supporters of human rights and the Iranian people, who deserve the right to live without the fear of death and imprisonment from brutality and persecution. We fervently hope for a world where everyone is free to be themselves without being subjected to persecution and violence."

About SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit SAG-AFTRA online at SAGAFTRA.org.