Whistleblowers

The first whistleblower we supported was Chelsea Manning in 2010, an army analyst who leaked thousands of classified files to Wikileaks. With Queer Strike we joined her defense campaign and helped internationalise her struggle.

Over the years, we have supported and publicized the revelations of many whistleblowers, including US computer consultant Edward Snowden who exposed secret surveillance practices of the National Security Agency and David Miranda detained at Heathrow airport in 2013 for carrying information obtained by Snowden. Although not himself a whistleblower, Julian Assange has been persecuted for broadcasting whistleblowers' disclosures and we are part of the international movement to free him.

Defending whistleblowers has proven essential to build movements against abuse, corruption and exploitation in institutions. With the Global Women's Strike, we have supported Compassion in Care which has defended thousands of grassroots whistleblowers in care homes, hospitals, financial institutions, the police and elsewhere. We support their campaign for Edna's Law and their opposition to the government's Bill to set up an Office for the Whistleblower.