"As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me," Manning said in the statement, according to CNN. "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."
Manning's lawyer, David Coombs, told Today that he is hoping officials at the Fort Leavenworth military prison where his client will spend at least the next 35 years, will provide his client the hormone therapy.
"I'm hoping Fort Leavenworth would do the right thing and provide that," Coombs said. "If Fort Leavenworth does not, then I am going to do everything in my power to make sure that they are forced to do so."
During the trial, Manning's problems with gender identity surfaced frequently, and he claimed to be "dealing with a lot of issues" concerning this crisis at the time that he decided to leak the documents.
He told a sergeant in an email that included a picture of him wearing a woman's wig, that his gender confusion was "not going away, it's haunting me more and more as I get older. . . Now, the consequences of it are dire, at a time when it's causing me great pain in itself. As a result, I'm not sure what to do about it."
An Army psychologist who testified for the defense, said Manning did appear to be isolated and under intense pressure as a male soldier struggling with gender identity issues.
Testimony about his struggle did little to inspire leniency from the court where he received the harshest sentence ever given for leaking classified information to the media - 35 years.
The public is reacting with outrage to his latest announcement about wanting the government to fund his gender transition.
Commenting on the CNN story, "mbutler91c" wrote: ". . . (L)et him wait until AFTER he serves his sentence and then let him pay for this himself."
"Burning Winter" agrees: "The military shouldn't pay for it. A dishonorable discharge means no benefits whatsoever."
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