Thursday, August 22, 2013

Bradley Manning is now Chelsea Manning

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Previous Related Posts:
Wikileaks Associate Bradley Manning Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison
Bradley Manning Apologizes at Trial



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Complete Statement from Chelsea Manning from NBC Today Show
Subject: The Next Stage of My Life

I want to thank everybody who has supported me over the last three years. Throughout this long ordeal, your letters of support and encouragement have helped keep me strong. I am forever indebted to those who wrote to me, made a donation to my defense fund, or came to watch a portion of the trial. I would especially like to thank Courage to Resist and the Bradley Manning Support Network for their tireless efforts in raising awareness for my case and providing for my legal representation.

As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me. I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female. Given the way that I feel, and have felt since childhood, I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible. I hope that you will support me in this transition. I also request that, starting today, you refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun (except in official mail to the confinement facility). I look forward to receiving letters from supporters and having the opportunity to write back.

Thank you,

Chelsea E. Manning

While Fort Leavenworth, the prison where Manning will serve her sentence, does not offer hormone therapy, (Attorney David) Coombs told host Savannah Guthrie he would fight to ensure his client received the medical treatment she needed. He also said he and Manning had not discussed sex reassignment surgery, and that getting her access to the needed hormones is his priority at this time.
Asked why Chelsea Manning had not made a statement about her gender before the trial was over, Coombs said, “She didn’t want this to be something that overshadowed the case.”
~ MSNBC

The Army does not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery for gender identity disorder.
~ Statement from the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth










































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