Chelsea Manning Is Free, Enjoying Life As a Civilian
A decade since she enlisted in the Army as a transwoman, controversial whistleblower Chelsea Manning is finally free.
Manning left her tiny cell in a prison in Kansas in the morning of May 18. She was originally sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking confidential military files but Obama shortened her sentence before officially leaving his U.S. presidential post.
A former intelligence analyst, Manning used to be known as Bradley. She was convicted as Bradley for sending highly classified reports called the "Iraq War Logs" and "Afghan War Diary" to Wikileaks in 2010. Shortly after being put behind bars, she confessed that she had been a woman by heart and would like to live the rest of her life as Chelsea, not Bradley.
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After being convicted, Manning said she had decided to leak the military files in order to spark a debate on the true role of foreign policy and the U.S. military. Before her incarceration, she apologized for her "mistake" and expressed her apologies for having hurt the U.S.
Since leaving the Kansas prison, Manning has been actively tweeting and sharing tidbits of her new life as a civilian using the hashtag #ChelseaIsFree. A small group of her friends organized an online campaign to raise enough resources to pay for her living costs following her release.
One of Manning's lawyers, Vince Ward, said: "It's not one of those situations you see on TV, where the gates open and Chelsea has a suitcase and she walks off. She doesn't have any clothes right now. She has a prison jumpsuit. She has a huge network of people who are ready to welcome her with open arms but it's going to take time for her to transition into outside life."
Despite her release, the military will still have control over Manning's life, ensuring that she will remain active on duty and abiding by military rules.
