The Life of Edward Snowden: A Famous Whistleblower

Edward Snowden needs no introduction. The seemingly innocuous guy caused a major world upheaval when he released thousands of documents showing that the American government was not only spying on its citizens, but also on other world leaders who were supposed to be allies. These revelations impacted many military operations, and sparked a debate about the importance of individual privacy vis-à-vis national security. Snowden himself was later charged with espionage and stealing state secrets.

Bio

Edward Joseph Snowden was born on the 21st of June 1983 in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. His father’s name is Lonnie while his mother’s name is Elizabeth. The whistleblower also has an elder sister named Jessica. Snowden’s family has a long history of government service. His maternal grandfather was a rear admiral in the Coast Guards while his father was an officer in the same outfit. His mother is a court clerk while his sister worked at the Federal Judicial Center, Washington D. C. Edward Snowden spent his formative years in the Fort Mead area of Maryland. While growing, he battled with some heathy issues which caused him to miss school for an extended period of time. He consequently decided to complete his diploma via the GED route and after that, enrolled at the Anne Arundel Community College. He however did not receive his degree.

Net Worth

Snowden’s net worth is still under review but there is no doubt that his fortune must run into millions given the caliber of organizations that he worked for. Edward Snowden first worked as a security guard at an NSA-affiliated research facility in 2005. Even though he had no formal degree or training, his computer skills was quite exceptional and he was soon hired by the CIA in 2006. Snowden would go on to spend three years with them during which he was stationed in places such as Geneva, Switzerland. He served as a top cybersecurity expert and at one time, provided security support for the American president. Edward Snowden joined the NSA in 2009, working for contract companies such as Dell and Booz Allen Hamilton. During his four year stint, he realized that the NSA had developed secret surveillance programs which they were using to harvest private data of American citizens, world leaders as well as several countries. These data ranged from phone and internet records to almost anything done on the internet. The magnitude of the surveillance program disillusioned him and he reported it to top level officials who did nothing. The young man reached his breaking point in March 2013 when the then director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, told Congress that no such surveillance program existed. Snowden thereafter contracted renowned journalist, Gleen Greenworld, and documentary filmmaker, Laura Poitras. The documents which he had retrieved was then published by several newspapers around the world.

Wife and Girlfriend

Snowden may be a controversial whistleblower but he remains human just like the rest of us and need some good old loving in his life. The former NSA analyst is in a relationship with fellow Maryland native, Lindsay Mills. A little background search on Mills reveals that she attended Laurel High School and received her diploma in 2003. She also studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art and graduated in 2007. Mills is now an accomplished acrobatic dancer as well as a pole dancing performing artist. Snowden and Mills commenced their relationship around 2008 and she lived with him while he was stationed in Hawaii. He reportedly did not tell her about his whistleblowing plans because he did not want to put her and her family in any sort of trouble. The couple have maintained their relationship despite the fallout from Snowden’s revelations as well as the fact that he now resides in faraway Russia. Mills regularly travels to Russia in order to visit her man. She also posts pictures from their time together on her Instagram account.

Where is He Now?

Edward Snowden is currently in Russia. After making up his mind to expose the NSA’s surveillance programs, he took a leave of absence from work and left for Hong Kong in May 2013. He spent at least a month there during which American authorities repeatedly tried, and failed, to extradite him back to the States. On the 23rd of June, the former NSA analyst left Hong Kong for Moscow. He spent nearly one month living inside Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport. During this period, he applied for asylum to several countries but these applications were largely thwarted by his home country. Snowden later got asylum from Russia and was able to leave the airport. The whistleblower now resides in a Moscow flat where he maintains a low profile and takes intense security measures. This is to avoid being kidnapped and brought back to America where he remains a wanted man.