DEARBORN — Two whistleblowers, Coleen Rowley and Thomas Drake will be sharing their stories at the Muslim Legal Fund of America Michigan Chapter’s first annual gala on Saturday, Mar. 23 at 7 p.m. at the Adoba Dearborn Hotel, formally known as the Hyatt Regency Hotel. 

Rowley (L) and Drake

Rowley is a former FBI special agent who was named one of Time Magazine’s 2002 Persons of the Year for her whistleblowing on 9/11 lapses in the FBI investigation of Zacarias Moussaoul.  In June of 2002, Coleen testified to the Senate Judiciary Committee about some of the endemic problems faced by the FBI and the intelligence community. She is now retired from the FBI and focuses her energies on advocating for peace and civil liberties. 

Drake, a former senior executive for the U.S. National Security Agency, received national attention when he became an outspoken critic and whitle blower of the NSA’s Trailblazer Project, a program designed to analyze data carried on communications networks. Drake alleged that the project violated privacy protections. After having his home raided by the FBI and being indicted by a grand jury, Drake was awarded the 2011 recipient of the Ridenhour Prize for Truth-Telling. MLFA is entirely donor funded, and financial contributions made to it are tax-deductible and zakat-eligible. Tickets are $50 a person, and can be purchased by visiting www.mlfa.org.