Direct letter to OEN Readers: Please Attend National Whistleblower Meeting

We are pleased to invite you to attend this year’s National Whistleblower Assembly, organized by the Make it Safe Coalition. Individual co-sponsors include the Government Accountability Project (GAP), the International Association of Whistleblowers (IAW), the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), the National Whistleblowers Center (NWC), Project On Government Oversight (POGO) and the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law (UDC-DCSL).

The National Whistleblower Assembly will be held in Washington, DC, from Sunday March 8 to Wednesday March 11, 2009.

This year’s Assembly has four cornerstone objectives:

1. Matchmaking for solidarity and ongoing working relationships between whistleblowers and those who should benefit from their dissent, such as NGO’s, investigative journalists and government investigators;
2. Lobbying Congress to upgrade its rhetorical commitments for stronger whistleblower protection into reality, from completion of legislation pending nine years to overhaul the Whistleblower Protection Act, to comprehensive corporate rights expanding on five precedents in the last Congress
3. Providing "street law" so that whistleblowers learn how to use and act on their rights under new whistleblower laws; and
4. Providing a living history forum where whistleblowers can make a record of why they risked their careers to defend the public, and what happened.

The National Whistleblower Assembly will kick-off with a plenary session comprised of whistleblowers and government leaders. The Assembly will strategize on how to assist and help hold our leaders to President Obama’s commitment made his first day in office:

“Starting today, every agency and department should know that this administration stands on the side not of those who seek to withhold information, but those who seek to make it known.”

We encourage all 264 organizations and corporations that signed the Whistleblower Protection Act sign-on letter to join us! We are already bonded by a shared principle that “whistleblower protection is a foundation for any change in which the public can believe. It does not matter whether the issue is economic recovery, prescription drug safety, environmental protection, infrastructure spending, national health insurance, or foreign policy.”

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) seen on this May 21, 2008 file photo. (UPI Photo/KeTheme-based workshops will facilitate a constructive dialogue to break the pattern of isolation between NGOs and whistleblowers, covering a diverse range of topics, which can be found at www.makeitsafecampaign.org.

The Union of Concerned Scientists, the Government Accountability Project, and the Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest will provide a comprehensive lobby training prior to our direct legislative advocacy. Please note that participants will lobby in small groups, through scheduled appointments with the home state office when possible, to advocate for “best practices” whistleblower rights.

The National Whistleblower Assembly is opened to the public and free of charge; however, we welcome and encourage your financial support. Click here to make a tax-deductible donation through the Government Accountability Project. Please write “2009 NWA” in the designation/memo fields to ensure your contribution supports the National Whistleblower Assembly.

• If you or your organization would like to sponsor/co-sponsor a workshop or educational session, please fill out this workshop form and submit it to Michael McCray at mccray.michael@gmail.com, or Shanna Devine at shannad@whistleblower.org
  
  
• If you would like to host an event, please contact Shanna Devine at 202.457.0034 ext. 127 or shannad@whistleblower.org, for details. *Available on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Please RSVP for the National Whistleblower Assembly by February 20th to facilitate our planning, and send to shannad@whistleblower.org.

National Whistleblower Assembly updates, including workshops, speakers and hotel information, can be found at http://www.makeitsafecampaign.org.