"Empowering, So Brave": Trans Activists Praise Chelsea Manning, Raise Fears over Prison Conditions

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http://www.alternet.org/gender/empowering-so-brave-trans-activists-praise-chelsea-manning-raise-fears-over-prison-conditions



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Transcript

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

Amy Goodman: We turn now to the case of Chelsea Manning, the Army whistleblower known to the world up until yesterday as Bradley Manning. One day after a military judge handed down a 35-year sentence, Manning announced plans live as a woman under the name Chelsea Manning. Manning said, "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 also request that, starting today, you refer to me by my new name and use [the feminine] pronoun."

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Lauren McNamara: Well, she first got in touch with me in February of 2009 after viewing my videos on YouTube. She contacted me first, and we spoke over AOL Instant Messenger for a period of several months. She was mostly interested in my videos about politics, religion, LGBT issues, and she felt we shared a similar mindset on these issues. And so, we spoke at length about that. She opened up to me about her history, her dealings with her family, her troubles in school, and her decision to join the military and her role as an intelligence analyst. And we spoke at length about that job and how she enjoyed it and how it was working out for her.


Amy Goodman: Lauren McNamara, I wanted to turn to excerpts from Instant Messenger chats between you and Manning from 2009. At the time, you used the Internet handle "ZJ," while Manning went by "bradass87." Manning writes, "uhhm... I’m politically active, even more so after enlisting... living under "Don’t Ask Don’t Tell" will certainly do that." You reply, "Yeah, I can’t say I’d ever enlist, for that reason in particular."

Elsewhere, Manning writes, "being around my platoon for 24 hours a day... it took them awhile, but they started figuring me out, making fun of me, mocking me, harassing me, heating up with one or two physical attacks... which i fended off just fine, but it was scary ... damn, i just read that... what the hell did i put myself through." You reply, "yeah, I doubt I’d ever join the military."