Defending Rights & Dissent

May 12, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at May 12, 2026

Rights Groups, Journalists, and Whistleblowers Call for Courtney Williams’ Release

A coalition of more than two dozen press freedom and human rights groups, members of the media, military veterans, and ex-government whistleblowers, has authored an open letter calling for the immediate release of U.S. Army veteran Courtney Williams, who has

April 30, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 30, 2026

Statement: Israel Abducts U.S. Journalists & Activists Aboard Humanitarian Flotilla

Defending Rights & Dissent Policy Director Chip Gibbons has issued the following statement in response to news that Israel has abducted activists and reporters aboard humanitarian aid boats bound for Gaza: We are deeply concerned that Israel has once again

April 17, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 17, 2026

BREAKING: Clean FISA reauthorization fails. We have 13 days to secure vital reforms.

Early this morning, the House took a dramatic vote, preventing Speaker Johnson and President Trump from ramming through an extension and expansion of FISA section 702. Their proposal was dressed up in deceitful language pretending to add reforms, but in

April 8, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 8, 2026

Source for U.S. Military Exposé Indicted under Espionage Act

A woman in North Carolina, Courtney Williams, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges under the Espionage Act for allegedly sharing classified information with investigative journalist Seth Harp for his 2025 book The Fort Bragg Cartel, which exposed widespread abuses at

April 7, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 7, 2026

200+ Human Rights Groups Call on Military to Refuse Lawful Orders After Trump’s Genocidal Iran Threat

Defending Rights & Dissent joins a coalition of over 200 human rights and humanitarian groups, led by Amnesty International and joined by Oxfam America, Human Rights Watch, and Refugees International, in cosigning an open letter condemning President Trump’s genocidal threats

April 6, 2026

Donald Trump, who has been indicted under the Espionage Act

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 6, 2026

Defending Rights & Dissent Calls for Trump’s Impeachment for War Crimes

Over the weekend, President Trump dramatically escalated his rhetoric against Iran, where the U.S. and Israel have been bombing for weeks, killing thousands. Just today the coalition bombed Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, one of Iran’s most prestigious academic

April 2, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at April 2, 2026

Press Freedom Coalition Fighting Trump’s Unconstitutional Media Attacks

Defending Rights & Dissent joined a media and press freedom coalition on a new amicus brief led by The Intercept’s Press Freedom Defense Fund, whose statement we’re crossposting below. By constitutional design, the press is antagonistic to the government. As the

March 23, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 23, 2026

Chip Gibbons Joins Historic WikiLeaks Symposium

Defending Rights & Dissent Policy Director Chip Gibbons was in Berlin last week to address an international symposium on the impact and importance of WikiLeaks’ revelations. Gibbons joined Stella Assange, WikiLeaks’ Editor-in-Chief Kristinn Hrafnsson, CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou, and others

March 19, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 19, 2026

Rep. Rashida Tlaib Introduces Landmark Espionage Act Reform: The Daniel Ellsberg Press Freedom & Whistleblower Protection Act

During remarks to the House floor on Wednesday, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) introduced the Daniel Ellsberg Press Freedom and Whistleblower Protection Act, a landmark bill to reform the Espionage Act to finally end its long history as a weapon to

March 17, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 17, 2026

Leqaa Kordia released from detention

New Jersey resident Leqaa Kordia has finally been released from immigration detention after more than a full year in confinement in Texas. She can now return home as she continues to fight the government’s deportation case against her. Leqaa was

March 13, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 13, 2026

Newsletter: March 2026

Responding to Trump’s illegal war on Iran Just weeks after kidnapping the president of Venezuela, Trump embarked on a new regime-change operation in flagrant violation of U.S. and international law when he began bombing Iran this month in coordination with

March 10, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 10, 2026

Veterans, Former Intelligence Officers to Congress: Pass the Daniel Ellsberg Act

Sixteen veterans of the U.S. armed forces and former members of the U.S. intelligence community, including retired Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, Colin Powell’s former chief of staff; former NSA officer and whistleblower Thomas Drake; and former USMC Captain and State Department

March 10, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 10, 2026

41 Press Freedom Groups Call for Immediate Release of Nashville-Based Journalist Arrested by ICE

On Tuesday, a coalition of 41 press-freedom groups demanded that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement immediately release journalist Estefany Rodriguez. Read the letter here. ICE failed to produce a warrant when Rodriguez, a Colombian-born reporter, was arrested on March

March 10, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 10, 2026

DRAD Fights Illegal Treasury Data Grab Proposal

Defending Rights & Dissent joined the Electroinc Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and 15 other organizations in an effort to prevent the U.S. Department of the Treasury from creating yet another illegal, privacy-defying national database. Together, we submitted comments objecting the Department’s

March 5, 2026

Published by Defending Rights & Dissent at March 5, 2026

Rights Groups to Congress: Protect Press Freedom, Pass the Daniel Ellsberg Act

Fourteen leading civil liberties, press freedom, and human rights groups, including Amnesty International, the Center for Constitutional Rights, and the Society of Professional Journalists, have joined Defending Rights & Dissent on a joint letter to members of Congress, urging the