Edward Snowden's image resurrected by projection artists in Brooklyn park

First, someone clandestinely erected a guerrilla statue of the NSA whistleblower in Brooklyn's Fort Green Park. But, authorities quickly moved in to remove the artwork.

Then, a local art collective resurrected the Snowden statue on the same spot -- if somewhat temporarily.

Grayson Earle and two friends took a specially-equipped van called The Illuminator to the site. They threw ash in the air, then projected a video image of the bust onto it and took a photo.

"Our goal was to carry on the conversation that those other artists had started," Earle tells As It Happens host Carol Off. "And [we wanted to] do it in an ephemeral way, with ash and video projection, to remark upon the fact that, even though the authorities had removed that statue, the spirit of Edward Snowden remained there."

Snowden is living in exile in Russia and facing felony charges in the United States for leaking a trove of classified documents. He is a hero to Earle and many others because he exposed the extent of government surveillance of the public's communication.

Earle acknowledges that many Americans don't know who Snowden is. And not all who do agree with his actions. Instead, they believe he put American security at risk.

He hopes his efforts -- and those of others -- will change that perception.

"Ask someone from Britain what they thought of George Washington. These things change," he says. "History will vindicate him . . . What sort of world would that look like if history doesn't vindicate him and soon?"

Earle was at the park when the police and city workers whisked the bust away. He's not sure where it is now.

"I guess Guantanamo Bay . . . It's probably at the Parks Department. I imagine they are dusting it for fingerprints and that maybe it'll be sold at Sotheby's in a couple of years."