Unitarian Church Leads NSA Lawsuit: Q&A with Rev. Rick Hoyt

"This is not a partisan issue, it's not about being right or left politically. It's about a basic, fundamental constitutional right," says Rev. Rick Hoyt.

Rev. Hoyt is leading his church, the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles, and 19 other organizations to sue the NSA for first, fourth, and fifth amendment violations resulting from electronic surveillance. Rev. Hoyt sat down with ReasonTV's Tracy Oppenheimer to discuss the lawsuit and why his church has a history of getting involved in political matters of this nature.

"In the 1950s, of course we all remember it was the McCarthy era, there was a lot of anti-communist hysteria going on, and here in Hollywood, actors and writers were being blacklisted for presumed communist affiliation," Rev. Hoyt says, "and my church took a very public and courageous stand on supporting people who were being harassed by the government because of their political beliefs."

About 4:30 minutes.

Produced by Tracy Oppenheimer. Camera by Alex Manning and Patrick Bowers.

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv/2013/08/08/unitarian-church-takes-lead-in-nsa-surve for downloadable versions and subscribe to ReasonTV's YouTube Channel to receive notifications when new material goes live.