'All I asked for was a chance': Chelsea Manning sobs

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[h=1]'All I asked for was a chance': Chelsea Manning sobs while thanking Obama for commuting her sentence but will not apologize for leaking classified docs in transgender leaker's first interview[/h]

• Chelsea Manning is giving her first interview since her release from prison in May, after serving seven years for violating the Espionage Act
• The 29-year-old was initially sentenced to 35 years behind bars for leaking over 700,000 documents, including ones that were classified and sensitive
• Her sentence was commuted by Barack Obama during one of his last days in office, and when asked what she would say to him she broke down in tears
• 'Thank you for giving me a chance. That's all I wanted,' said Manning in a preview of her appearance on 'Nightline,' which will air early next week
• She also stated in the interview that it was her 'responsibility' to leak the documents, but and refused to formally apologize
• The former army intelligence officer, who came out as transgender after her arrest, also said her hormone treatments were a life or death matter for her in jail

 

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Chelsea Manning broke down in tears while thanking former President Barack Obama in her first interview since she was released from prison last month.
In a preview of her 'Nightline' interview with Juju Chang that will air early next week, Manning was asked what she would say to Obama if she had the chance to speak with him after he commuted her prison sentence prior to leaving office.
She immediately began sobbing at the mention of Obama's name, before saying: 'Thank you for giving me a chance. That's all I wanted.'
Manning, 29, continued to cry as she then added: 'That's all I asked for was chance, that's it. And this is my chance.'
Her initial prison sentence had been for 35 years, the longest term ever handed down to a leaker in the United States, but thanks to Obama she was released after just seven years behind bars.
When the former army intelligence officer was asked if she believed that she owed Americans an apology for her actions, she replied: 'I've accepted responsibility. No one told me to do this. Nobody directed me to do this.'
She then added: 'This is me. It's on me.'
Manning wore a floor-length knit tan dress with three-quarter length sleeves and a crewneck for her interview.
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Speaking out: Chelsea Manning is giving her first interview since her release from prison in May, after serving seven years for violating the Espionage Act (above on Nightline with Juju Cheng)

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Emotional moment: Her sentence was commented by Barack Obama during one of his last days in office, and when asked what she would say to him she broke down in tears (above)



Manning was asked early in the preview, which aired on 'Good Morning America,' if she was ever concerned that the over 700,000 documents she leaked to Wikileaks would threaten national security.
'No,' said Manning, who opted not to expound upon her answer.
Chang then asked Manning to respond to her detractors, who believed that by leaking these documents Manning was potentially giving top-secret information to enemies of the United States.
'Right, but I have a responsibility to the public,' explained Manning.
'You know, it's not just about me. We all have responsibility.'

 

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She then spoke about how the images she saw on some of the tapes made her feel like it was imperative that she act.
'We're getting all this information from all these different sources and it's just death, destruction, mayhem,' said Manning.
It's literally what keeps me alive. It keeps me from feeling like I'm in the wrong body.
-Chelsea Manning on her hormone treatments


'We're filtering it all through facts, statistics, reports, dates, times, locations, and eventually, you just stop. I stopped seeing just statistics and information, and I started seeing people.'
Manning explained that at the time, she had hoped the release of the documents would cause public debate, and raise awareness.
'I work with this information every day. I'm the subject matter expert for this stuff,' said Manning.
'You know, we're the ones who work with it the most. We're the most familiar with it. It's not, you know, it's not a general who writes this stuff.'

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Lengthy sentence: The 29-year-old (above in July 2013 leaving a military hearing) was initially sentenced to 35 years behind bars for leaking over 700,000 documents, including ones that were classified and sensitive

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Coming out: The former army intelligence officer, who came out as transgender after her arrest, also said her hormone treatments were a life or death matter for her in jail (above in her first post-prison photo)

Manning also spoke about her hormone treatments, which she was not allowed to receive when she first entered prison when the military denied her request.
In 2015, after almost five years of legal battles and a hunger strike, Manning got her wish and began receiving her hormones.
That victory also came after she attempted to commit suicide on two occasions, which is why the treatment was necessary she explained to Chang.
It's literally what keeps me alive,' said Manning of her hormones.
'It keeps me from feeling like I'm in the wrong body.'

 

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She then explained how bad it would get at times, saying: 'I used to get these horrible feeling like I just wanted to rip my body apart and I don't want to have to go through that experience again. It's really, really awful.'
Manning also said that despite her prison sentence and own personal difficulties during her time in the armed services, she has nothing but 'utmost respect' for the military.
'The military is diverse, and large, and it's public, it serves a public function, it serves a public duty,' said Manning.
'And the people who are in the military work very hard, often for not much money, to make their country better and to protect their country. I have nothing but respect for that. And that's why I signed up.'
As for life on the outside, she said it was a 'culture shock.'
Manning also took to Twitter to promote her special, which still does not have an air date, writing of the preview: 'so - im walking in a bookstore - books - epic music plays - words are said in epic way by an epic voice - how epic - meh'
In another, she called her interview with Chang 'fun, engaging and emotional,' saying it was an honor to work with the television journalist.
And on Friday morning she tweeted: '[T]his was the first time in seven years that anyone actually gets to see me talk and on so many platforms.'

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New look: Manning wore a floor-length knit tan dress with three-quarter length sleeves and a crewneck (above) for her interview

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Getting out the word: Manning also took to Twitter to promote her special, which still does not have an air date, writing of the preview: 'so - im walking in a bookstore - books - epic music plays - words are said in epic way by an epic voice' (above)

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Proud: In another, she called her interview with Chang 'fun, engaging and emotional,' saying it was an honor to work with the television journalist (above)

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Big deal: And on Friday morning she tweeted: '[T]his was the first time in seven years that anyone actually gets to see me talk and on so many platforms' (above)

Making her release even more surreal is the fact that is going from relative obscurity before her sentencing to being a transgender icon and role model.
She earned those titles as a result of her battles while in prison, paving the way for transgender inmates to receive hormones and even surgery.
It was announced back in September that the army had agreed to allow Chelsea to undergo gender transition surgery, six days after she started a hunger strike in protest of their refusal to allow her to have the operation.
'I am unendingly relieved that the military is finally doing the right thing. I applaud them for that. This is all that I wanted – for them to let me be me,' said Chelsea at the time.
She was the first transgender inmate to ever be approved for the surgery.
Chelsea successfully petitioned to have her name changed in 2014, and began hormone therapy in February of the next year.
It marked the first time the Army had allowed the therapy in prison, and they still required that Chelsea keep her hair cut short as per their standards.
Two months after she was approved for hormone therapy, Chelsea wrote about how happy she was in a letter to Amnesty International, which the group posted on their Facebook accounts.
'I finally began my prescribed regime of hormones to continue my overdue gender transition in February,' explained Chelsea, who used the letter to thank members of the group for their support.
'It's been such an amazing relief for my body and brain to finally come into alignment with each other. My stress and anxiety levels have tapered off quite considerably. Overall, things are beginning to move along nicely.'
She added that the she was 'staying strong' thanks to the support of Amnesty advocates.
Chelsea has been documenting her time back in the real world ever since she was released back ion May.
Her first post showed her 'first steps of freedom' in a pair of new black Converse hours after her release from Fort Leavenworth military prison in Kansas, while her second was of the slice of pizza she had been looking forward to enjoying for the past seven years.
She then capped off her day with a $150 bottle of Dom Perignon champagne, writing: 'Here's to freedom and a new beginning.'
And the following morning she posed a photo of herself, giving the public their first look at her as a private citizen.
Then, after posting four Instagram photos in her first 24 hours as a private citizen, Manning began to dial thing back, and has only posted four more in the months since her release.
Two were of an Italian dinner, one was of Starbucks and the fourth shows Manning playing a video game.

 

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Wine and dine: Manning has been posting images of her post-prison life to Instagram (left her pizza lunch on the day she was released and her champagne on right)

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Supporters: When asked if she wanted to apologize to for her actions, Manning stated: ''I've accepted responsibility. No one told me to do this' (Manning supporters above at her trial in 2013)

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Chelsea's new life: She has also posted photos of herself playing video games (left) and getting her caffeine fix (right) over the past month

She has been behind bars since 2010, when she was first charged with giving classified government materials to WikiLeaks.
Chelsea, who was named Bradley at birth, was convicted in 2013 on 20 of the 22 offenses with which she was charged, including six Espionage Act violations, theft and computer fraud.
She was acquitted of the most serious charge she was facing, aiding the enemy.
Chelsea was then sentenced to 35 years in prison, but that was later commuted to seven years beginning with the date of her arrest by Obama just days before he left office.
In total, she released more than 700,000 classified military and diplomatic documents via WikiLeaks.
She said she wanted to expose what she considered to be the US military's disregard of the effects of war on civilians and that she released information that she didn't believe would harm the United States.
Critics said the leaks laid bare some of the nation's most-sensitive secrets and endangered information sources, prompting the State Department to help some of those people move to protect their safety.
The Crescent, Oklahoma, native tweeted after being granted clemency that she plans to move to Maryland.
Chelsea previously lived with her aunt Debra in Potomac for a little over a year before she enlisted in 2007, at which time she attended some college, had a boyfriend and held down a handful of jobs.

Read more:

• Chelsea Manning explains why she leaked secret military documents, fought for transgender rights behind bars - ABC News
• Yahoo! Good Morning America - Latest News & Headlines

 

[Willie99]

He's so "courageous"

 

[Dave007inVegas]

I'd advise Chelsea Manning to grow a set but that would be cruel.

 

[SheriffJoe]

Gross on so many levels.

ucking:

 

[roadreeler57]

Main reason Obama let it out is because its a he/she.....

 

[GasMan]

Fucking nutcase queer weirdo.

100% chance she's a Dem

 

[mountain]

I would be happy if I never had to see a visual of this person the rest of my life

 

[HamGlaze]

He..She.. What is

 

[HamGlaze]

I'd advise Chelsea Manning to grow a set but that would be cruel.

Quote of the year!