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A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Becky Jones, GAP
202.457.0034, ext. 127
supportwhistleblowers@gmail.com

Shanna Devine, GAP Legislative Associate
202.457.0034, ext. 124
shannad@whistleblower.org

Dylan Blaylock, GAP Communications Director
202.457.0034, ext. 137
dylanb@whistleblower.org

National Whistleblower Assembly Starts Monday

Participants Include Serpico, Ellsberg, Van Hollen, Rowley

WASHINGTON

The Government Accountability
Project (GAP) and a coalition of public interest organizations are proud
to present
this year's National Whistleblower Assembly, taking place this Monday
and
Tuesday on Capitol Hill. This year's conference is chalked full of noted
politicians, key government officials, and an all-star line up of famous
whistleblowers. Cosponsors of the event include the American Federation
of
Government Employees, Federal Law Enforcement Officer's Association,
National
Treasury Employees Union, Project On Government Oversight, Semmelweis
Society
International, and the Make It Safe Coalition.

The aim of this year's
conference is to raise
awareness and build public support for the passing of the Whistleblower
Protection Enhancement Act, currently stalled in the Senate.

All events will take
place at either the Capitol Visitors
Center, Rayburn House Office
congressional rooms, or the Stewart R. Mott House (two minutes walking
from the
Visitors Center). Prominent guests that will
speak at conference events include:

  • Frank
    Serpico

    - NYPD whistleblower whose story is memorialized by the
    film that shares his name. Serpico will give opening remarks at the
    conference's plenary session the morning of Monday, May 24.
  • Rep.
    Chris Van Hollen
    - Democratic Representative from Maryland and a
    longtime champion of whistleblower rights. Van Hollen will also
    speak at
    the plenary session.
  • Norm
    Eisen*
    -
    Special Counsel to President Obama for Ethics and
    Government Reform. *Eisen is invited to speak at the plenary
    session.
  • Coleen
    Rowley
    -
    FBI whistleblower who detailed intelligence breakdowns in
    relation to the 9/11 attacks, and Time Magazine's "Person of
    the Year" in 2002. Rowley will participate in a luncheon panel on
    National Security issues at 2 p.m. on Monday, May 24.
  • Daniel
    Ellsberg

    - The patriarch of modern whistleblowing,
    his disclosures (the Pentagon Papers) as a Rand Corporation/DoD
    analyst
    exposed deceit and concealment involving the government's handling
    of the Vietnam War. Ellsberg will provide the closing remarks of
    the
    conference at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, May 25.
  • Key officials
    from federal agencies related to whistleblowing - including the
    Merit Systems Protection Board, Administrative Review Board, and
    Occupational Safety and Health Administration - will be available
    at
    a "Meet the New Appointments" session from at 5 p.m. on
    Monday, May 24.

For a full list of
participants and a working schedule
of events, please click
here
.

Members of the media are
encouraged to reserve their
spot at the conference by contacting GAP Communications Director Dylan
Blaylock at dylanb@whistleblower.org.
For more information regarding any aspect of the conference, please
contact
GAP's Becky Jones at 202.457.0034, ext. 127, or supportwhistleblowers@gmail.com.

The National
Whistleblower Assembly is open to the
public and free of charge. The Capitol
Visitors Center
is located at
E Capitol St NE & 1st St
NE. The Stewart R. Mott House is located
at 122 Maryland Ave NE.

The Government Accountability Project (GAP) is a 30-year-old nonprofit public interest group that promotes government and corporate accountability by advancing occupational free speech, defending whistleblowers, and empowering citizen activists. We pursue this mission through our Nuclear Safety, International Reform, Corporate Accountability, Food & Drug Safety, and Federal Employee/National Security programs. GAP is the nation's leading whistleblower protection organization.