Sunday Read: The Story of National Whistleblower Day
For years, the National Whistleblower Center (NWC) has hosted an annual National Whistleblower Day event on or near July 30th, featuring prestigious and impactful keynote speakers, educational sessions and networking opportunities.
NWC’s National Whistleblower Day Live 10th Anniversary Celebration will be held on July 27, 2023 in Washington, D.C. By commemorating the contributions of whistleblowers around the world who have bravely stepped forward to expose waste, fraud, and abuse, NWC provides a forum for strong ideas that can further this noble practice.
What many might not know is that National Whistleblower Day — July 30th — has particular significance in U.S. history. In this Sunday Read, we will delve into the story of National Whistleblower Day and highlight NWC events to demonstrate the impact it has had on the legal and whistleblower landscapes.
The Abridged Story of July 30, 1778
The origins of whistleblower law in the United States date back to the 1770s and the American Revolution.
Esek Hopkins was a Rhode Island slave runner who became the commander in chief of the first United States Navy under then-General George Washington. Seamen under Hopkins’ command reported his wrongdoing and abuses committed in the Continental Navy against captured British soldiers.
Hopkins subsequently retaliated against these whistleblowers, including Richard Marven and Samuel Shaw, by arresting them. Ultimately, Hopkins commission was terminated by Congress on Jan. 2, 1778, and the passage of the world’s first whistleblower law followed six months later on July 30, 1778 — which is why the date is designated as National Whistleblower Day.
The broader account of the interconnection between Hopkins, Marven and Shaw was first highlighted in The New Whistleblower’s Handbook, written by NWC Founder & Chairman of the Board Stephen M. Kohn. Mr. Kohn tells the story of these incredible whistleblowers at each year’s National Whistleblower Day Celebration. The value of the story is described by Kohn as “remarkable,” he told Whistleblower Network News. “The sentiments and the issues are exactly what I hear today [in representing whistleblowers].”
Highlights of ‘The Day’
NWC’s mission is to advocate for whistleblowers and support their efforts to expose and help prosecute corruption and other wrongdoing around the world. For the past decade, NWC has honored history by hosting an event that puts the spotlight on whistleblowers and the advocates and stakeholders who have supported them.
In 2022, National Whistleblower Day was a three-day, public virtual event featuring participation from 10 federal agencies leading up to July 30th. NWC presented 12 sessions, including a keynote delivered by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA), and panels led by the House Office of the Whistleblower Ombuds, French Parliament Member Ugo Bernalicis,[SN1] the North American Securities Administrators Association, and several whistleblowers from around the world. The Senate resolution for a permanent Day received unanimous support and the NWC raised more than $5,000 in its NWD fundraiser.
Sen. Grassley addressed attendees virtually in during the 2022 National Whistleblower Day event, which marked the 159th anniversary of the False Claims Act (FCA) being signed into law by Pres. Abraham Lincoln.
Sen. Grassley noted that he led efforts in 1986 to modernize the law.
“Since that update, the [FCA] has helped recover more than $70 billion of taxpayer funds lost to fraud alone,” he said. “But the FCA is constantly under attack by industries looking to make it easier to make a dollar out of defrauding the government.”
He added that his recent bill — an update to the FCA in 2021 — included language that would help protect against a new generation of fraudsters against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Authorities and whistleblowers, themselves, have comprised the roster of speakers through the years. For example, securities whistleblower and former Bear Stearns employee Eugene Ross delivered an affecting presentation, detailing his experience as a whistleblower who merely tried to protect clients from fraud.
“Every fraud victim’s best hope is a whistleblower,” Ross said at National Whistleblower Day 2019. “We need strong whistleblowers and we need strong laws if we seriously want to address securities fraud.”
He continued to detail his experience as a victim of retaliation by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the agency that was supposed to protect him and other whistleblowers in similar situations. He thanked Sen. Grassley, New Jersey Representative Chris Smith, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto partner and NWC co-founder David K. Colapinto and Frank Medina, senior counsel to the House Financial Services for helping persuade FINRA to reinstate his securities license in 2010.
“Our current regulatory system is flawed,” he said. “Company compliance programs, mandatory arbitration and industry self-regulation is the wrong way to tackle securities fraud. If we really want to stop the securities industry from ripping people off, we need whistleblowers, independent regulators and we need to enforce strong whistleblower laws.”
The event also attracts many high-level individuals in government agencies. In 2018, Michael E. Horowitz, the Inspector General of the Department of Justice (DOJ), addressed National Whistleblower Day attendees in Washington.
“It is so important for us as IGs for you to be willing to come forward and report to us on waste, abuse, misconduct, mismanagement, what you see in organizations that you’ve worked with and worked for — whether they are within the agency with contractors with grant recipients,” he said during his address, which was televised by C-SPAN.
A permanent Whistleblower Day would better ensure such prestigious speakers can continue to appear and impact the audience as event organizers continue to innovate and present new methods for delivering content and making an impact.
What Would National Whistleblower Day Be?
The purpose of National Whistleblower Day is for federal agencies and employers to educate their employees and celebrate whistleblowers and their contributions to the health, safety and economic prosperity of their organizations and even the country. This forum would acknowledge whistleblowers’ core traits and their contributions to combating:
· Fraud.
· Abuses of authority.
· Environmental threats.
· Harmful or unethical actions and wrongdoing by agencies and companies.
Further, it will be a time to reinforce key facts:
· Recoveries include recaptured monies, illicitly obtained assets, and penalties.
· Penalties and recoveries are also an incredible deterrent from future malicious acts by others.
· Whistleblower programs with mandatory reward provisions consistently net multiple times more than they cost to operate.
· And whistleblower rewards come directly from sanctions — not from taxpayers.
Whether they look to the history books or to recent news and achievements for inspiration, employers and agency leaders can help employees spot the signs of retaliation and further support whistleblowers in their efforts to expose and help prosecute corruption and other wrongdoing around the world.
Fraud, corruption, and waste can only be rooted out by addressing the culture that silences those trying to speak the truth.
Thanks largely to NWC’s awareness efforts, the U.S. Senate has unanimously voted to recognize July 30th as National Whistleblower Appreciation Day since 2013. Senators Grassley and Wyden introduced the resolution for 2023 on July 10, 2023. NWC and its partners have continually urged the House of Representatives and President Biden to further acknowledge the critical importance of all whistleblowers in defending the integrity of our democracy by recognizing July 30th of every year as a Federal Day of Observance.
An executive order signed by President Biden will require the government to acknowledge the importance of increasing openness and transparency. It is time, as President Biden stated in his 2023 State of the Union Address, it is time to “Finish the Job.” We need to take action now to declare July 30th the permanent day of observance that honors whistleblowers — National Whistleblower Day.
Support NWC
NWC marks a decade of celebrating whistleblowers. Our National Whistleblower Appreciation Day efforts have reached the public and inspired legislators to act. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit our work is made possible with the support of our generous donors. Please consider donating $75 today to help us continue our celebration of whistleblowers and their impact on society.
This story was written by Justin Smulison, a professional writer, podcaster and event host based in New York.
