Ben Wizner is an American lawyer, writer, and civil liberties advocate born on June 24, 1971, in New York City. He earned an A.B. from Harvard College in 1993 and a J.D. from Yale Law School in 1998. After clerking for Judge Stephen Reinhardt on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and working as a litigation associate, he joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in 2001 as a staff attorney. In 2002, he was appointed director of the ACLU's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, a role in which he has become a prominent civil liberties advocate focusing on issues at the intersection of technology, privacy, and free speech. His work gained international prominence in July 2013 when he became the lead attorney for Edward Snowden, representing him in matters related to whistleblowing, surveillance, and national security. Wizner has litigated high-profile cases challenging government surveillance and defending digital rights, including challenges to the USA PATRIOT Act. He has also worked on civil rights initiatives with organizations like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), advocated for immigrant rights and LGBTQ+ communities, written for outlets such as The New York Times and The Atlantic, taught adjunct courses on national security law, and served on advisory boards for privacy-focused nonprofits. Through amicus briefs, public testimony, and media appearances, he continues to influence policy on surveillance, privacy, and free speech in the digital age.