Chelsea Manning breaks silence from behind bars

The Army made her feel like a joke but they couldnt keep her silent.

Chelsea Manning formerly known as Bradley E. Manning the ex-Army intelligence analyst sentenced to 35 years for leaking a treasure trove of secret documents to WikiLeaks, has given her first public interview with the press from military prison in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Bradley Manning, now known as Chelsea Manning, in 2013.Photo: Getty Images

Speaking through the mail to Cosmopolitan magazine, Manning opened up about her recent experience behind bars and her lifelong desire to live as a woman.

I dont know how [this struggle] shaped my life and who I am, but its absolutely a factor in the decisions that I made before and including when I enlisted in the Army, she explained.

Manning who began transitioning into a woman last year through the use of hormones, makeup, and female clothing also describes feeling disconnected most of her life.

I had always known that I was different. I didnt really understand it all until I got older, she said.

Manning tells Cosmo that she joined the Army with hopes that the macho environment would distract her from thoughts of living as a woman. But she got a rude awakening in 2007 during basic training in Missouri.

I absolutely was caught off guard by the intensity, she remembered. There were points when I was humiliated pretty badly.

Serving in Iraq, though, would prove to be a turning point emotionally for Manning.

See the original post here:
Chelsea Manning breaks silence from behind bars

Related Posts
This entry was posted in $1$s. Bookmark the permalink.