The 17th Unity4J online vigil in defence of Julian Assange took place on February 15, US Eastern Time, hosted by Consortium News editor-in-chief Joe Lauria. The forum featured former whistleblower John Kiriakou; Australian WikiLeaks activist and independent filmmaker Cathy Vogan; Disobedient Media editor-in-chief Elizabeth Vos; and other contributors.

James Cogan, the national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party (Australia), accepted an invitation by Joe Lauria to participate.

In the course of an extended discussion with Lauria and other speakers, Cogan explained why the SEP has called demonstrations in Sydney on March 3 and Melbourne on March 10 to demand that the Australian government intervene to secure the freedom of Julian Assange, as well as the broader campaign being conducted by the World Socialist Web Site against internet censorship.

Cogan began speaking at approximately 1:17:30 into the three-hour forum.