News & Commentary written by Jameel Jaffer

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Jameel Jaffer

Director, Knight First Amendment Institute

Bio

Jameel Jaffer () is a former deputy legal director of the ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµand former director of its Center for Democracy, which houses the organization's work on human rights, national security, free speech, privacy, and technology. He has litigated many cases relating to government surveillance, including challenges to the Patriot Act's national security letter provision, the Bush administration's warrantless wiretapping program, and the National Security Agency's call-tracking program. He has also litigated cases relating to targeted killing and torture, including a landmark case under the Freedom of Information Act that resulted in the release of the Bush administration's torture memos and hundreds of other documents relating to the Bush administration's torture program. He is currently working on a book about individual privacy and official secrecy, a project he began as an Open Society Fellow in 2013. Before joining the staff of the ACLU, he clerked for Judge Amalya L. Kearse of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, and Rt. Hon. Beverley McLachlin, Chief Justice of Canada. He is a graduate of Williams College, Cambridge University, and Harvard Law School.


Featured work

Jul 17, 2013

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµon the Hill: NSA Surveillance Intrusive and Unconstitutional

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµon the Hill: NSA Surveillance Intrusive and Unconstitutional

Jun 21, 2013

How the NSA's Surveillance Procedures Threaten Americans' Privacy

How the NSA's Surveillance Procedures Threaten Americans' Privacy

Jun 10, 2013

Checks, Balances, and the National Security Agency

Checks, Balances, and the National Security Agency

Mar 29, 2013

What the Government Should Disclose About Its Targeted Killing Program

What the Government Should Disclose About Its Targeted Killing Program

Mar 12, 2013

American Torture and the 'Heroic Imagination'

American Torture and the 'Heroic Imagination'

Feb 4, 2013

The Justice Department’s White Paper on Targeted Killing

The Justice Department’s White Paper on Targeted Killing

Jun 7, 2012

First the 'targeted killing' campaign, then the targeted propaganda campaign

First the 'targeted killing' campaign, then the targeted propaganda campaign

May 1, 2012

Further Reflections About John Brennan's Targeted Killing Speech

Further Reflections About John Brennan's Targeted Killing Speech

Apr 18, 2012

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµAsks Supreme Court to Reject Government's Effort to Block Judicial Review of Surveillance Law

ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµAsks Supreme Court to Reject Government's Effort to Block Judicial Review of Surveillance Law

Mar 15, 2012

Sens. Wyden and Udall Weigh in on ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµPatriot Act FOIA Case

Sens. Wyden and Udall Weigh in on ÌÒ×ÓÊÓÆµPatriot Act FOIA Case