"No Fear Act" - Whistleblower Legislation

Jackson's words best describe the life and work of Matthew Fogg, retired Chief Deputy, United States Marshal and active advocate for justice and equal opportunity.

Matthew Fogg, a native of Washington, D.C., is an identical twin and the second youngest of 10 children. His mother lived to be 84 and his father lived to be 100 years of age.

Matthew graduated from Marshall University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Administration. Later he received an honorary Masters' and Doctorate degree in recognition of his knowledge, skills and experience in law enforcement, civil and human rights work.

In 1978 Matthew was sworn in as a Deputy United States Marshal under supervision of the US Department of Justice. In 1989, he supervised an elite Drug Enforcement Administration, Metropolitan Area Task Force apprehending over 300 fugitives from justice nationwide. These fugitives faced charges of murder, rape, child molestation, kidnap, prison escape, drug kingpins and many other heinous crimes. Five of them were featured on the U.S. Marshal's "15 Most Wanted" list, and profiled on the famed TV show ~ America's Most Wanted.

Among many law enforcement accolades, Matthew received top awards from the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and the Federal Bar Association for reducing crime in the DC area and for outstanding law enforcement service, above and beyond the call of duty - while in the line of fire.

In 1998, Matthew became a barrier breaker and trailblazer against racial discrimination in the federal workplace. A DC federal jury awarded him a landmark four million dollar judgment that promoted him to Chief Deputy US Marshal and found the entire US Marshals Service to be a "racial(ly) hostile environment for all African-American Deputy US Marshals."

Matthew testified before Congress on several occasions, lectured at many universities and organizational forums. He has been a guest on many national radio and television programs such as CBS, CSPAN, BET, Dateline, Geraldo Rivera, and Crossfire to name a few - always sharing his expertise in equating law enforcement operations to current social justice issues. Today Matthew affectionately equates his experience in the Marshals Service and conversion to human rights advocacy to that of Paul in the Bible, often telling his audiences, "I was on the road to Damascus."

On the tragic morning of 9/11, while near the World Trade Center in New York City, Matthew volunteered his law enforcement expertise to render search, rescue and recovery to victims of the terrorist attacks. His picture recovering the body of a deceased NY Firefighter was later featured in the October 2001 edition of Peoples Magazine entitled "America Unites". Matthew was also interviewed by CNN's Paula Zhan who spotlighted his heroic efforts at Ground Zero.

Matthew was one of the original authors of the famed Notification and Federal Employees Anti-Discrimination Act of 2002, also known as the ‘NOFEAR Act and the first Civil Rights legislation of the 21st Century signed by President Bush on May 15, 2002. Later he received the NOFEAR Institute ‘Whistle Award' for blowing-the-whistle on discrimination and for assisting other employees in need. 'Vanity Fair' magazine featured Matthew as a prominent national Whistle-blower in a story entitled "Out From The Shadows".

Matthew has advocated for hundreds of individual government workers and Class Complainants across the U.S. and in Korea. He has represented and won precedent-setting Equal Employment Opportunity Commission judgments against the US Air Force - Tennessee Air National Guard, the United States Army's Space & Missile Defense Command and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Huntsville, Alabama. Matthew also won DC unemployment benefits for a female whistle blower who worked for President George W. Bush in the West Wing of the White House.

As the National 1st Vice President of Blacks In Government (BIG) and a Board member for Amnesty International USA in 2005, Matthew sponsored seven Resolutions that were adopted and unified the national organizations' opposition to Racial Profiling; DC Taxation without Representation; the War on Drugs; Genocide in Sudan; the US Patriot Act; Police use of TASERS; and the US Death Penalty.

In 2007 he was appointed as an ‘Ambassador For Peace' by the Universal Peace Federation following his human rights mission to Africa and to Korea and his staunch advocacy against discrimination in the federal government and it's polices that have a desperate impact on the poor. Today he Co-Chairs the NOFEAR Coalition which co-authored the ‘Congressional Disclosures Protections Act' (H.R. 4650), sponsored and announced by Maryland Congressman the honorable Albert Wynn on January 22, 2008. When enacted, the bill will strengthen current whistleblower laws.

Matthew is President of the BIG Heritage Chapter, Federally Employed Women's DC Charter Chapter, and National President of Congress Against Racism and Corruption in Law Enforcement (CARCLE). He is Executive Director of the Redstone Area Minority Employees Association (RAMEA); First Vice Chairperson of the 3.5.7 Commission, a privately established judicial reform organization; and Co-Chair of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), DC Health Committee.

Matthew's motto is, "I only regret that I have but one life to give defending the human rights of others." He is currently working on a book, depicting his more than 25 year journey to justice while employed by the US Department of Justice.