If you have been following any of GAP’s recent activities, you are likely aware of the current expansion of the national security state. From the latest Espionage Act prosecution by the Obama administration of an intelligence whistleblower (that’s six so far!) to the newly revised rules for counterterrorism analysts broadening their access to private information of US citizens, it’s clear government secrecy and surveillance are on the rise.
That’s why GAP is excited to announce a special event next month, on April 4. GAP is teaming up with Open Society Foundations in Manhattan to present an amazing night that will analyze the current and vast problems with the ever-growing national security state.
National Security Secrecy and Surveillance:
Defending the Public’s Right to Know
OSI-New York Building
April 4, 2012
6:00 – 8:00 pm
The scale of government secrecy and surveillance has surpassed all previous boundaries – especially in the national security arena, where the budgets, size and scope of intelligence agencies have ballooned since 9/11. Unprecedented secrecy is largely evading traditional oversight mechanisms, leaving policy makers, the media, and the public in the dark.
What impact are secret governmental operations having on our democratic processes, and are the decisions that are being made behind closed doors helping or harming our national security? What tools are available to penetrate this secrecy, foster a new culture of government accountability, and impose enforceable constraints on intrusive surveillance of innocent Americans?
These questions will be explored by a distinguished panel consisting of high-profile government whistleblowers, key plaintiffs and litigators from headline Freedom of Information Act cases, and expert journalists who have followed the evolution of the national security state for years. Each will offer insights informed by their own direct encounters with national security secrecy and surveillance.
This unique event features some of the biggest names advocating for greater transparency in the national security sector. They include:
- Steven Aftergood, Senior Research Analyst at the Federation of American Scientists (moderator)
- Nancy Chang, OSF National Security & Human Rights Campaign Manager (introduction for the panel)
- Thomas Drake, National Security Agency (NSA) whistleblower and GAP client
- Jameel Jaffer, ACLU Deputy Legal Director & Center for Democracy Director
- Jesselyn Radack , GAP National Security & Human Rights Director, and Department of Justice whistleblower
- Tim Shorrock, Investigative journalist and the author of Spies For Hire: The Secret World of Intelligence Outsourcing
Seating for this event is extremely limited. If you are interested in attending, please be sure to RSVP today!
For more information, click here.