WikiLeaks Army leaker Bradley Manning confessed sexual orientation in a statement he gave NBC's "Today" on Thursday, shifting his espionage controversy to wayward gender identity crisis.
After receiving his sentence for the charges pressed against the over 70,000 army files leakage he gave WikiLeaks in 2009 and 2010, Bradley Manning boldly announced his sexual orientation to the public - he had suffered from sexual identity crisis while still in Iraq, his lawyers contended.
"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," the 25-year-old US soldier said in his letter read by Savannah Guthrie on 'Today' show. "Given the way that I feel and have felt since childhood, I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible... I also request that starting today you refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun," he added.
Bradley Manning's lawyer David Coombs expressed that he is hoping that the Fort Leavenworth, Kan military prison would allow his client's request, adding that he would do "everything in my [his] power" to ensure the US soldier's hormone therapy.
On the other hand, Lt. Col. Justin Platt told the media that Manning's demand is unlikely to happen. "The Army does not provide hormone therapy or sex-reassignment surgery."
A military official said that the demoted private will still remain as a male for most, if not all of them, and he will even be treated as such.
"All inmates are considered soldiers and are treated as such with access to mental health professionals, including a psychiatrist, psychologist, social workers and behavioral science noncommissioned officers," George Wright, army spokesman said.
Bradley Manning was sentenced to 53 years imprisonment on August 21, Wednesday, but because of his good-natured behavior and the credit for his well-served time as a US soldier, he could be out of prison within 7 years.
Facing Gender Identity Crisis
Prior to his conviction this week, Bradley Manning's sexual orientation was already questioned repeatedly during several court proceedings, after a photo of him wearing a blonde wig has surfaced in the web.
The photograph - which he titled "My Problem" - was actually part of an email he sent to his sergeant in the past.
"It's not going away, it's haunting me more and more as I get older," the Army leaker stated in his email. "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 appeared in court for one of the marital proceedings, said that the 25-year-old was seemingly at odds of maintaining his macho image as a male soldier while battling against gender identity crisis
The document was presented in court early last week as evidence to what Manning claimed one of the difficult issues he is facing as of late.
© 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
