'I am Chelsea Manning': Bradley Manning announces that she is a woman and intends to start hormone therapy to transition to a female



The Army private, 25, said in a statement that she has known since childhood that she is female and wishes to be referred to as a woman

Army: 'We do not provide hormone therapy for gender identity disorder'

Lawyer said he will fight for Fort Leavenworth to provide hormone therapy



Throughout the trial, lawyers and experts said she had struggled with gender identity disorder in the masculine environment of the Army



She was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Wednesday but is eligible for parole after eight years

Bradley Manning has revealed that she wants to live as a woman named Chelsea and intends to undergo hormone therapy to begin her transition to a female.



The 25-year-old soldier, who was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Wednesday for leaking thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks, made the shock announcement through her attorney on the Today show on Thursday.

'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,' Manning wrote in the statement entitled, 'The Next Stage of My Life'.

'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.'

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New identity: Bradley Manning has announced that she wishes to be referred to as Chelsea Manning. In this undated photo provided by the U.S. Army, Manning poses for a photo wearing a wig and lipstick

New life: Manning, pictured outside the Maryland court on Tuesday, said she has felt she is a woman since her childhood. On Wednesday, she was sentenced to 35 years behind bars for leaking documents



She added that she now wishes to be referred to as Chelsea and as a 'she' rather than a 'he'.

On Thursday, Manning's lawyer David Coombs denied she was making this announcement for the attention or because she was a narcissist.

'Chelsea didn't want to have this be something that overshadowed the case,' Coombs explained.



He added that Fort Leavenworth, where Manning is serving her term, does not provide hormone therapy for soldiers, but that he hoped the facility would 'do the right thing' and provide it.

'If not, I am going to everything in my power to make sure everything is done to force them,' he said.

On Thursday morning, an Army spokesman told CBS News : 'The Army does not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery for gender identity disorder.'

Military inmates have access to mental health professionals, including a psychiatrist, psychologist, social workers and behavioral science specialists, she said.

Coombs added that he had not yet spoken to Manning about gender realignment surgery - or whether she expected Fort Leavenworth to cover the costs of the operation. He also did not expand on whether Manning would eventually be moved to a female facility.



Announcement: Manning's lawyer David Coombs released his statement on the Today show on Thursday Support: David Coombs said he will force Fort Leavenworth to pay for the hormone therapy treatment

'The ultimate goal is to feel comfortable in her skin,' he said.

Manning arrived at the facility on Thursday to begin her sentence. The prison is all-male, but spokesman George Marcec said soldiers can be separated from other inmates if they're a risk to themselves or others.

He added that Manning would not be allowed to wear a wig or bra and that her hair would have to be kept to military standard.



'I AM A FEMALE': BRADLEY MANNING ANNOUNCES NEW IDENTITY

Below is the full statement Manning shared with the Today show on Thursday:

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

During the 12-week trial, the Army released an image showing Manning wearing a blonde wig and makeup in a photograph she had taken herself. Manning had sent the picture to her therapist in an email with the subject 'My Problem' as she struggled with her gender identity in April 2010.

'She never really wanted this to be public,' Coombs added of Manning's identity and the photograph. 'Now that it is, unfortunately, you have to deal with it in a public manner.'



Throughout the trial, her lawyers had argued that Manning was under incredible stress at the time of the leaks as she struggled with gender identity disorder in the masculine environment of the Army.

'The stress that he was under was mostly to give context to what was going on at the time,' Coombs told Savannah Guthrie on Today. 'It was never an excuse because that's not what drove his actions. What drove his actions was a strong moral compass.'

A psychiatrist, Navy Reserve Captain David Moulton, testified during Manning's trial that she suffered from gender dysphoria, or wanting to be the opposite sex, as well as narcissism and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Defense lawyers had argued that Manning had been increasingly isolated and under intense stress when she leaked the files, and that her superiors had ignored warning signs.

They cited erratic behavior, including sending a picture of her dressed as a woman to a superior and punching another soldier.



On Wednesday, Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking an unprecedented volume of classified documents to WikiLeaks.



Coombs added on Thursday that he did not expect Manning to serve her full sentence - and even expected President Obama to pardon the soldier.

The first class Army private appeared not to show any emotion when her long-awaited fate was read out, though spectators gasped inside the military courtroom at Fort Meade, Maryland.

Because of the 1,294 days she has already spent in custody, Manning will immediately shave three and a half years off her 35-year term.

She is eligible for parole after serving at least one-third of the sentence, which means she could be free in eight years, when she's 33 or 34 years old.



Troubled time: Manning was isolated and alone in the Army because of her desire to dress in female clothing



'Red flags': Defense attorneys said superiors should have recognized issues Manning was having

Manning also learned she will be reduced in grade to the rank of private E1, dishonorably discharged from the military and forfeit all pay and allowances.

In a press conference following the hearing, Coombs said he was saddened by the sentence, adding that it didn't represent the harm his client had caused.

He said: 'When I heard the sentence I thought to myself "I have represented hundreds of clients some of them have committed murders and some have molested children and those clients received less time than private Manning."'

Manning's sentencing, lasting just a couple of minutes, capped off a 12-week trial and a much longer legal battle over the former intelligence analyst's intentions when she reached out to WikiLeaks.

Following the hearing, Manning was quickly ushered out of the court where she was met by supporters who shouted 'we'll keep fighting for you Bradley' and 'you're our hero.'

Younger years: Manning, who was apparently considering transitioning to become a woman when she returned from the warzone, has said she does not like seeing pictures of herself as a young boy

Struggle: Manning, pictured as a child, was bullied throughout school for being gay, friends have said

The sentence was more severe than many had expected, and is much longer than any punishment previously given to a U.S. government leaker.

The soldier's supporters are planning protest rallies in cities including Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis, New York and Boston.



The former intelligence analyst was found guilty last month of 20 crimes, including six violations of the Espionage Act, as part of the Obama administration's unprecedented crackdown on media leaks.

But the judge acquitted her of the most serious charge, aiding the enemy, an offense that could have meant life in prison without parole.

Prosecutors portrayed Manning as 'the determined insider,' an anarchist hacker and traitor who started working within weeks of his 2009 deployment to provide WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange with exactly what they wanted.

Emotional: In this courtroom sketch made Wednesday, Manning is escorted from the courtroom as spectators gasp and cry. She will be eligible for parole after eight years The government had urged the military judge, Army Colonel Denise Lind, to sentence her to 60 years in prison for crimes that include six Espionage Act violations, five theft counts and computer fraud. Manning and her defense team maintain she was an idealistic soldier with a pure motive - to expose brutal truths about America's military and diplomatic corps.

Manning's mother in Wales, Susan Manning, who is in poor health following a stroke, said she cried out and ran from the living room in her home after hearing the sentence. 'I hope it will be reduced,' his uncle Kevin Fox added BBC television. 'To be honest, he shouldn't have been given any time at all. In my eyes, he is a hero.' In a statement, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who has taken refuge at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, decried Manning's trial and conviction as 'an affront to basic concepts of Western justice.'

Fight: A Manning supporter holds a sign as she demonstrates in front of the White House on Wednesday

Speaking out: Groups gathered in front of the White House after the lengthy jail term was announced

But he called the sentence a 'significant strategic victory' as Manning could be free as early as 2021.

The leaked material included video of a U.S. helicopter attack that killed at least two civilians -- a Reuters news photographer and his driver.

'I believed I was going to help people, not hurt people,' Manning said in a courtroom apology.