It appears that Black Lives Matter activists have teamed up with an unlikely ally: national whistleblower Edward Snowden.
According to the Huffington Post, Snowden, who exposed the NSA’s surveillance habits in 2013, tweeted “If you want to protect your rights, you’ve got to protect the rights of others. Social justice is common sense.”
His tweet captured the attention of Ferguson activist DeRay Mckesson, who responded and asked him his thoughts about the Black Lives Matter movement.
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Snowden compared the unjust policing of certain communities to government surveillance, which he said is “unevenly distributed.” Mckesson asked what he and other activists who have been constantly monitored in recent months could do to which Snowden recommended that they organize and encrypt all of the data that they pass along to one another.
“And always, always, always have a backup plan for leaderless resistance,” Snowden recommended. “Spontaneous organization is the hardest for adversaries to counter.”
McKesson ended the Twitter convo by asking Snowden if he would be open to holding a joint public talk to discuss surveillance and state violence, which Snowden gladly agreed to.
What do you think of this newfound partnership?