To the editors:
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No sensible freelance expects to earn a living from the left press; we write for ITT because we support the paper politically and value the open forum it offers. Problems with arbitrary copy changes and misplaced manuscripts, not money, forced us to seek a contract in the late 1980s. Understanding ITT’s problems, we accepted an unorthodox contract which lets the paper indefinitely delay payment to writers when the money runs short. It requires only that ITT send each writer a letter explaining the delay. Grievances accumulated because the paper repeatedly withheld payment without such explanation. Each round of grievances brought new promises of change, swiftly followed by new misdeeds.
We mounted our current (very gentle) pressure campaign only after Editor James Weinstein unilaterally repudiated a joint fund-raising agreement which could have brought in more money for writers and the newspaper. Even at this late date, we encourage donors to support ITT: we ask only that they earmark their money for writer payments.
