Human rights groups from around the world have delivered more than a million signatures to the White House, asking President Barack Obama to pardon Edward Snowden, the man who blew the whistle on warrantless government surveillance of all Americans.

Given the political climate, the timing couldn’t be more urgent. Once Donald Trump comes into office, no such pardon will be possible. In fact, Trump has suggested Snowden should be executed. Snowden can be viewed by patriotic Americans as a fellow patriot, a whistleblower, a dissident, or as a traitor.

I asked Obama to pardon Snowden over the holidays. To me, this is a tech story, not just a political one. Americans have to be more aware about protecting our data, our privacy, and our freedoms. He exposed illegal activities and started a public debate that led to a crackdown on the NSA’s sweeping powers and led to efforts to curb spying on U.S. citizens.

The U.S. Department of Justice charged Snowden with violating the Espionage Act of 1917 and with theft of government property. He flew to Moscow in June 2013. The U.S. government revoked his passport, and Russia granted him temporary asylum.

After hearing about the signatures, Snowden replied with a tweet:

The world’s top human rights groups just delivered over one million signatures to Obama. For once, I have no words. https://t.co/djIALHgYea pic.twitter.com/g23bp9g066 — Edward Snowden (@Snowden) January 13, 2017

Here’s a copy of the letter.