Whistle-Blowing on a Hill

By David Swanson

Whistle blowing (exposing secret wrong-doing), in the military, in civilian public service, or in the private sector appears to be about as safe as lying down on a railroad track.

This week is the No Fear Institute's Whistleblowers Week ( http://w3conference.org ) in Washington, D.C. I attended Wednesday's hearings held in the Dirksen Senate Office Building and opened by Senator Chuck Grassley. Grassley spoke of whistleblower protection laws he sponsored over the past 20 years, and suggested that what's needed to protect whistleblowers from retaliation is updated legislation. (As the result of a Supreme Court decision, whistleblowers are required, for example, to file claims of retaliation in a period of time that may end before the retaliation has even occurred). New legislation like that promoted by the No Fear Institute would help even more, of course, if we had a president who was required to obey laws.

Walter Fauntroy chaired the hearing. Nicole Harrison testified first. She had filed a complaint with her employer, the Department of Education, and was retaliated against.

Among those testifying were members of Iraq Veterans Against the War, who will be testifying in "Winter Soldier" hearings on Thursday in the House. Adam Kokesh opened by asking for a moment of silence for those who have died in Iraq because whistleblowers did not speak out on the lies that led to the war. Kokesh said that IVAW members have been retaliated against and denied their First Amendment rights. Kokesh was illegally stripped of his honorable discharge. All of this, he said, is because those in power do not want the American people to know what is happening in Iraq.

Mike Lebowitz, a reserve JAG officer, said there is no deterrent under current law to retaliation against whistleblowers in the military.

Numerous other witnesses testified on a variety of whistle-blowing cases in public and private service, including a lengthy line-up of physicians.

Martin Salazar testified that he is facing a year in prison. He had assisted a woman who filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) complaint and was retaliated against by the Department of Energy, and he filed his own complaints. His driver's license was suspended, his bank account closed, his retirement canceled. He agreed to a settlement and was then wrongly indicted anyway.

Janet Howard worked for the Commerce Department, filed a complaint for racial discrimination, and lost her job for it.

John Poynter ran a business in Nashville and discovered fraud by an investor and reported it. In his next job he reported fraud and lost his job.

Arthur Schur has blown the whistle on sham peer review and corruption in the licensing of physicians.

Clark Baker worked for the Los Angeles Police Department. From 1983 to 1991, he said, there were Rodney King style arrests virtually every day, resulting from a policy requiring police to beat drug intoxicated suspects with batons. Baker publicized that policy with an op-ed in his union paper and in the Daily News. He was charged criminally for allegedly beating someone up, and he was convicted and fired. Baker later won a lawsuit and got his job back.

Margaret Harris testified with a oxygen machine attached to her nose. She worked for the Air Force and was exposed to a harmful workplace for years.

Janet Parker testified that she had been assaulted in retaliation for whistle-blowing, and an assistant District Attorney with whom she spoke had been brutally murdered.

Four Department of Commerce, Trademark and Patent Office employees testified about racial discrimination and whistleblower retaliation, which they said began there with the Bush Administration.

This was a room full of risk takers, of people who have spoken out on their own behalfs and others', and in virtually every case suffered for it. Over half of them, by a show of hands, are currently out of work.

The corporate media was not present for this event.