One of the most eye-opening and, in my opinion, important topics we covered in our EOTO presentations was Whistleblowers. In short, Whistleblowers are the people on the inside who leak information that generally shows wrongdoing. These people are usually government workers but could also be employed by a large company. They became a whistleblower because they saw some sort of mal intention or action occurring and instead of staying quiet, they risked their job to leak classified information, they think, the public should know.
Information useful, yet hidden, from the public, can include secret attacks, torture, privacy invasions, and much more. Essentially, any wrongdoing a government entity or company is committing can and should be shared with the public to condemn such action. Whistleblowers help fight corruption and limit rights violations. They are righteous citizens and should be respected for risking harsh punishments.
Whistleblowers can risk losing their job (this almost always happens) and even prosecution from the government. Luckily, OSHA has created some protections for workers who want to report wrongdoings. One example used in the presentation was Edward Snowden. Snowden was an NSA employee and noticed all the ways in which the United States government spies on us and invades our privacy. He leaked this information and it caused a major stir from the general population, and rightfully so, our rights to privacy were being invaded. Snowden lost his job and was forced to move to Russia where he still resides today to avoid prosecution from the American government.
Whistleblowers are incredibly important to our society. Without them, we would be blind to all the evil things happening right under our noses. We deserve to know the truth and whistleblowers help protect our rights. When we become aware of a fact that only employees of a company know, and it affects our well-being, we can react and make sure those activities no longer continue.
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