Edward Snowden, a former soldier and member of the NSA, joined twitter on the Sep. 29, 2015.
Can you hear me now?
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) September 29, 2015
Snowden was exiled to Hong Kong, and then Russia, in fear of conviction for his deeds as a whistleblower. He eventually took to Twitter to use his voice, and embrace the following he’d gained through whistleblowing. He faced a lot of ridicule from people against him almost immediately, yet never chose to step away. Now, nearly two years later, he’s made his opinions on the current state of America very clear. He says he doesn’t particularly stand against any president, equally willing to acknowledge any and all faults any candidate has made. He outlined the problems with Obama’s drone strike orders in his forward of The Assassination Complex, explained all faults in Hillary Clinton’s campaign, and tears apart Trump’s arguments against minority citizens, and his pieced together presidency. However, a few incidents since Trump’s inauguration have gained a lot of public interest, and he’s taken to using his platform of nearly three million followers to speak out about them more thoroughly.
During the Women’s March, he provided live updates on news broadcasting of the protests, and offered his support to those marching. He tweeted about how the New York Times and Washington Post weren’t headlining the march on multiple occasions, and defended the march with the phrase Respect resistance.
Boston, St. Louis, DC; crowds still gathering. But it’s not what you see at the top of @NYTimes or @WashingtonPost. #WomensMarch pic.twitter.com/cMReyf6c6V
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 21, 2017
Listen, it’s alright to disagree with a protest, but diminishing them is what got us the problems we face today. Respect resistance.
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 21, 2017
Both @WashingtonPost and @NYTimes have laudable coverage of the protests — but they’re still not leading with it. That’s the problem.
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 21, 2017
The @NYTimes and @WashingtonPost are both now leading with remarkable #WomensMarch headlines for their already-solid reporting. Well done! pic.twitter.com/OaYCXc2PbF
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 21, 2017
During the Muslim Ban situation that began on the 28th of January, he provided live updates and resources for those whose lives were in danger, and those who wanted to help and/or donate to those at risk. Most notably during his updating were his tweets regarding how this ban went against the constitution, and how this is still the people’s America no matter what Trump tries to do.
In every moment, look around and ask yourself: “Is this right?” There are no heroes, only heroic choices. Act accordingly.
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 28, 2017
This is a great summary of active and planned protests going on in response to the #MuslimBan order. https://t.co/VgrHcezlBU
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 28, 2017
Listen, I don’t care about parties. I care about the Constitution. And if you do too, you have a problem with religious preferences. #The1st
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 28, 2017
“My country, right or wrong; if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right.” #SetItRight https://t.co/0aVZeqRvI9
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 28, 2017
Snowden, a man who was exiled from his home country for trying to protect the citizens from a corrupt government, is still fighting for us. A man who was continuously accused of being allies with Russia and their government, is still fighting for us. He is fighting against everything Trump is trying to accomplish just like the rest of us are. Edward Snowden is not our enemy. It’s time we stop treating him like one. If we can get Chelsea Manning’s sentence reduced, we can bring Snowden home.
There’s an old saying that goes respect existence or expect resistance, and in the state we’re in, I think we could use all the help we can get in resisting.
