SCHEUERMAN ON SNOWDEN & CIVIL DISOBEDIENCEPHIL 102, SPRING 2017CHRISTINA HENDRICKSUNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA

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EDWARD SNOWDEN• Formerly worked for

Central Intelligence Agency in the U.S.

• Former contractor for U.S. gov’t

• Leaked classified info from National Security Agency in U.S. in 2013

• U.S. charges with violating Espionage act; currently asylum in Russia

Edward Snowden, by Laura Poitras/Praxis films, Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY 3.0

WHAT WAS LEAKED?Among many other things...• NSA collects call data from many

phone companies in U.S.; intercepts all phone calls in Bahamas & Afghanistan

• Xkeyscore: “You could read anyone’s email in the world” –Snowden

• U.S spies on other countries’ embassies & leaders

• NSA collects contact lists from email & IM

AFTERMATH OF LEAKS, FOR SNOWDEN

• Went to Hong Kong to make revelations• Charged with:o Theft of gov’t propertyo Violating 1917 Espionage Act

• Flew to Russia, tried to go to Latin Americao Passport revoked by U.S.o U.S. pressures countries on route to

Latin America not to let plane lando Still in Russia on temporary permit

SCHEUERMAN’S ARGUMENTComponents of civil disobedience (611, 617)

Public, communicative

Aim to change law

Non-violent

Conscientious

Protest signs icon public domain on thenounproject.com; Woman thinking icon made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com, licensed CC BY 3.0

Last resort

Accept punishment

?

CONSCIENTIOUSNESS

Don’t leak classified intelligence documents

4th & 5th Amendments

US Constitution

Article 12, Universal Decl. Human Rights

Nuremberg trial ruling

Selflessly, self-sacrifice

Fundamental rights & freedoms

GROUPS• Why might some argue that accepting

punishment should be required for legitimate civil disobedience?

• What does Scheuerman argue in response?

• What do you think?

https://is.gd/phil102civildisobedience

ACCEPT PUNISHMENT?

Why might this be important for CD?• Respect for law: e.g., MLK Jr. in “Letter” (p.

4)o Don’t treat differently than other criminals

• Gives evidence of “unselfishness and public-mindedness, their moral seriousness ...” (Sheuerman p. 618)

• Deterrence (618)

SCHEUERMAN’S ARGUMENTS RE: ACCEPTING PUNISHMENT

Moral seriousness, unselfishnessDeterrenceRespect for lawDon’t treat differently than other criminals

Snowden’s sacrifices,even if not officialpunishment

Only if possibility of basic “rule-of-law virtues” (619)

But civil disobedients are different

A LARGER POINTShould one be required to submit to punishment for breaking the law of a state when one believes that state is not itself following international laws or human rights?

“...we need to build a stronger global legal and especially human rights system ...” (622)