Evidence presented at Article 32 hearing
In April 2011, a panel of experts, having completed a medical andmental evaluation of Manning, ruled that she was fit to stand trial.An Article 32 hearing, presided over by Lieutenant Colonel PaulAlmanza, was convened on December 16, 2011, at Fort Meade, Maryland;the hearing resulted in Almanza's recommending that Manning bereferred to a general court-martial. She was arraigned on February23, 2012, and declined to enter a plea.
During the Article 32 hearing, the prosecution, led by CaptainAshden Fein, presented 300,000 pages of documents in evidence,including chat logs and classified material. The court heard from twoArmy investigators, Special Agent David Shaver, head of the digitalforensics and research branch of the Army's Computer CrimeInvestigative Unit (CCIU); and Mark Johnson, a digital forensicscontractor from ManTech International, who works for the CCIU. Theytestified that they had found 100,000 State Department cables on aworkplace computer Manning had used between November 2009 and May2010; 400,000 military reports from Iraq and 91,000 from Afghanistanon an SD card found in her basement room in her aunt's home inPotomac, Maryland; and 10,000 cables on her personal MacBook Pro andstorage devices that they said had not been passed to WikiLeaksbecause a file was corrupted. They also recovered 14 to 15 pages ofencrypted chats, in unallocated space on Manning's MacBook harddrive, between Manning and someone believed to be Julian Assange. Twoof the chat handles, which used the Berlin Chaos Computer Club'sdomain (ccc.de), were associated with the names Julian Assange andNathaniel Frank.
Johnson said he found SSH logs on the MacBook that showed an SFTPconnection, from an IP address that resolved to Manning's aunt'shome, to a Swedish IP address with links to WikiLeaks. Also found wasa text file named "Readme", attached to the logs andapparently written by Manning to Assange, which called the Iraq andAfghan War logs "possibly one of the most significantdocuments of our time, removing the fog of war and revealing the truenature of 21st century asymmetric warfare". Theinvestigators testified they had also recovered an exchange from May2010 between Manning and Eric Schmiedl, a Boston mathematician, inwhich Manning said she was the source of the Baghdad helicopterattack ("Collateral Murder") video. Johnson saidthere had been two attempts to delete the material from the MacBook.The operating system had been re-installed in January 2010, and on oraround January 31, 2010, an attempt had been made to erase the harddrive by doing a "zero-fill", which involvesoverwriting material with zeroes. The material was recovered afterthe overwrite attempts from unallocated space.
Manning's lawyers argued that the government had overstated theharm the release of the documents had caused and had overchargedManning to force her to give evidence against Assange. The defensealso raised questions about whether Manning's confusion over hergender identity affected her behavior and decision making.
Guilty plea, trial, sentence
United States v. Manning
The judge, Army Colonel Denise Lind, ruled in January 2013 thatany sentence would be reduced by 112 days because of the treatmentManning received at Quantico. On February 28, Manning pleaded guiltyto 10 of the 22 charges. Reading for over an hour from a 35-pagestatement, she said she had leaked the cables "to show thetrue cost of war". Prosecutors pursued a court-martial onthe remaining charges.
The trial began on June 3, 2013. Manning was convicted on July 30,on 17 of the 22 charges in their entirety, including five counts ofespionage and theft, and an amended version of four other charges;she was acquitted of aiding the enemy. The sentencing phase began thenext day.
Captain Michael Worsley, a military psychologist who had treatedManning before her arrest, testified that Manning had been leftisolated in the Army, trying to deal with gender identity issues in a"hyper-masculine environment". David Moulton, a Navyforensic psychiatrist who saw Manning after the arrest, said Manninghad narcissistic traits, and showed signs of both fetal alcoholsyndrome and Asperger syndrome. He said that, in leaking thematerial, Manning had been "acting out [a] grandioseideation".
A defense psychiatrist, testifying to Manning's motives, suggesteda different agenda:
Well, Pfc Manning was under the impression that his leakedinformation was going to really change how the world views the warsin Afghanistan and Iraq, and future wars, actually. This was anattempt to crowdsource analysis of the war, and it was his opinionthat if ... through crowdsourcing, enough analysis was done on thesedocuments, which he felt to be very important, that it would lead toa greater good ... that society as a whole would come to theconclusion that the war wasn't worth it ... that really no wars areworth it.
On August 14, Manning apologized to the court: "I am sorrythat my actions hurt people. I'm sorry that they hurt the UnitedStates. I am sorry for the unintended consequences of my actions.When I made these decisions I believed I was going to help people,not hurt people. ... At the time of my decisions, I was dealing witha lot of issues."
Manning's offenses carried a maximum sentence of 90 years. Thegovernment asked for 60 years as a deterrent to others, whileManning's lawyer asked for no more than 25 years. She was sentencedon August 21 to 35 years in prison, reduction in rank to private(private E-1 or PVT), forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and adishonorable discharge. She was given credit for 1,293 days ofpretrial confinement, including 112 days for her treatment atQuantico, and would have been eligible for parole after servingone-third of the sentence. She was confined at the United StatesDisciplinary Barracks (USDB) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
The sentence was criticized as "unjust and unfair"by The Guardian, and as "excessive" by The New YorkTimes.
On April 14, 2014, Manning's request for clemency was denied; thecase went to the United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals forfurther review.
Requests for release
On September 3, 2013, Manning's lawyer filed a Petition forCommutation of Sentence to President Obama through the pardonattorney at the Department of Justice and Secretary of the Army JohnM. McHugh. he petition contended that Manning's disclosures did notcause any "real damage", and that the documents inquestion did not merit protection as they were not sensitive. Therequest included a supporting letter from Amnesty International whichsaid that Manning's leaks had exposed violations of human rights.David Coombs's cover letter touched on Manning's role as awhistleblower, asking that Manning be granted a full pardon or thather sentence be reduced to time served.
In April 2015, Amnesty International posted online a letter fromManning in which she wrote: "I am now preparing for mycourt-martial appeal before the first appeals court. The appeal team,with my attorneys Nancy Hollander and Vince Ward, are hoping to fileour brief before the court in the next six months. We have alreadyhad success in getting the court to respect my gender identity byusing feminine pronouns in the court filings (she, her, etc.)."
In November 2016, Manning made a formal petition to PresidentObama to reduce her 35-year sentence to the six years of time she hadalready served. On December 10, 2016, a White House petition tocommute her sentence reached the minimum 100,000 signatures requiredfor an official response. Lawyers familiar with clemency applicationsstated in December 2016 that the pardon was unlikely to happen; therequest did not fit into the usual criteria.
Commutation
In January 2017, a Justice Department source said that Manning wason President Obama's short list for a possible commutation. OnJanuary 17, 2017, President Obama commuted all but four months ofManning's remaining sentence. In a press conference held on January18, Obama stated that Manning's original 35-year prison sentence was"very disproportionate relative to what other leakers havereceived" and that "it makes sense to commute—and notpardon—her sentence." In 2021, Forbes reported thatObama's commutation of Manning's sentence was "unconditional."Notwithstanding her commutation, Manning's military appeal wouldcontinue, with her attorney saying, "We fight in her appealto clear her name."
On January 26, 2017, in her first column for The Guardian sincethe commutation, Manning lamented that President Obama's politicalopponents consistently refused to compromise, resulting in "veryfew permanent accomplishments" during his time in office. As TheGuardian summarized it, she saw Obama's legacy as "a warningagainst not being bold enough". In response, PresidentDonald Trump tweeted that Manning was an "ungrateful traitor"and should "never have been released".
Release
Manning was released from Fort Leavenworth's detention center atapproximately 2 a.m. Central Time on May 17, 2017. Although sentencedduring her court-martial to be dishonorably discharged, Manning wasreportedly returned to active unpaid "excess leave"status while her appeal was pending.
Appeal
On May 31, 2018, the U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals upheldManning's 2013 court-martial conviction of violating the EspionageAct. The court rejected Manning's contention that the statute is toovague to provide fair notice of the criminal nature of disclosingclassified documents. "The facts of this case," thethree-judge panel ruled, "leave no question as to whatconstituted national defense information. Appellant's training andexperience indicate, without any doubt, she was on notice andunderstood the nature of the information she was disclosing and howits disclosure could negatively affect national defense." Thecourt also rejected Manning's assertion that her actions indisclosing classified information related to national security areprotected by the First Amendment. Manning, the court found, "hadno First Amendment right to make the disclosures—doing so not onlyviolated the nondisclosure agreements she signed but also jeopardizednational security."
On May 30, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forcesdenied Manning's petition for grant of review of the decision of theU.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals.
2019 jailing for contempt
In February 2019, Manning received a subpoena to testify in a U.S.government case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, theexistence of which had been accidentally revealed in November 2018,which was proceeding under prosecutors in Virginia. Manning objectedto the secrecy of the grand jury proceedings and announced she wouldrefuse to testify, saying "we've seen this power abusedcountless times to target political speech. I have nothing tocontribute to this case and I resent being forced to endanger myselfby participating in this predatory practice." Manning alsosaid she had provided all the information she had in 2013 during hercourt martial and that she stood by her previous answers.
On March 8, 2019, Manning was found in contempt of court andjailed in the women's wing of a detention center in Alexandria,Virginia, with the judge conditioning her release on her testifyingor the grand jury concluding its work. Manning was initially held inadministrative segregation for 28 days until she was placed in thegeneral population on April 5, 2019. Her supporters described herperiod in administrative segregation as "effective solitaryconfinement" as it involved "up to 22 hours each dayspent in isolation". Officials at the facility said thatadministrative segregation was used for safety reasons and thatprisoners still had access to recreation and social visits duringthat time. On April 22, 2019, a federal appeals court upheld thetrial court's decision holding Manning in contempt and denied arequest by Manning that she be released on bail.
After the grand jury's term expired, Manning was released on May9, 2019, and served with another subpoena to appear before a newgrand jury on May 16. Manning again refused to testify, stating thatshe "believe[d] this grand jury seeks to undermine theintegrity of public discourse with the aim of punishing those whoexpose any serious, ongoing, and systemic abuses of power by thisgovernment". The court ordered her returned to jail andfined $500 for each day over 30 days and $1,000 for each day over 60days. In June 2019, she challenged the fines because of inability topay. On December 30, 2019, United Nations special rapporteur NilsMelzer released a letter dated November 1, 2019 in which he accusedthe U.S. government of torturing Manning, called for her immediaterelease, and called for her court fines to be canceled or reimbursed.
On March 11, 2020, Manning attempted suicide two days before shewas scheduled to appear before a judge on a motion to terminatesanctions. Alexandria Sheriff Dana Lawhorne reported that Manning wassafe and her lawyers said she was recovering in a hospital.
On March 12, 2020, U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga of theEastern District of Virginia found that the business of the grandjury had concluded. Since Manning's testimony was no longer needed,the judge found that detention no longer served any coercive purpose,and ordered her released. He denied a request by Manning's lawyers tovacate her accrued fines of $256,000, which he ordered due andpayable immediately. That same day, a supporter launched an onlinecrowdfunding campaign to defray Manning's fines. Within 48 hours,nearly 7,000 donations ranging from $5 to $10,000 were received,totaling $267,000. A separate crowdfund by the same supporter raisedan additional $50,000 to help pay Manning's post-incarceration livingexpenses.
In January 2021, in refusing to extradite WikiLeaks founder JulianAssange to the U.S. for trial on federal charges, UK District JudgeVanessa Baraitser cited Manning's March 2020 suicide attempt tosupport finding that, if exposed to the "harsh conditions"of incarceration in America, "Assange's mental health woulddeteriorate causing him to commit suicide."
Reaction to disclosures
The publication of the leaked material, particularly thediplomatic cables, attracted in-depth coverage worldwide, withseveral governments blocking websites that contained embarrassingdetails. Alan Rusbridger, editor of The Guardian, said: "Ican't think of a time when there was ever a story generated by a newsorganization where the White House, the Kremlin, Chávez, India,China, everyone in the world was talking about these things. ... I'venever known a story that created such mayhem that wasn't an eventlike a war or a terrorist attack."
United States Navy Admiral Michael Mullen, then Chairman of theJoint Chiefs of Staff, said the leaks had placed the lives ofAmerican soldiers and Afghan informants in danger. Journalist GlennGreenwald argued that Manning was the most important whistleblowersince Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971. In animpromptu questioning session after a fundraiser, captured on a cellphone video, President Barack Obama said that Manning "brokethe law", which was later criticized as "unlawfulcommand influence" on Manning's upcoming trial.
In 2011, Manning and WikiLeaks were credited in part, along withnews reporters and political analysts, as catalysts for the ArabSpring that began in December 2010, when waves of protesters rose upagainst rulers across the Middle East and North Africa, after theleaked cables exposed government corruption. In 2012, however, JamesL. Gelvin, an American scholar of Middle Eastern history, wrote:"After the outbreak [January 2011] of the Egyptian uprising... journalists decided to abandon another term they had applied tothe Tunisian uprising: the first 'WikiLeaks Revolution,' a title theyhad adopted that overemphasized the role played by the leakedAmerican cables about corruption in provoking the protests."
A Washington Post editorial asked why an apparently unstable Armyprivate had been able to access and transfer sensitive material inthe first place. According to her biographer, the American far rightsaw Manning's sexuality as evidence that gay people were unfit formilitary service, while the American mainstream thought of Manning asa gay soldier driven mad by bullying.
A report written by the Department of Defense a year after thebreach found that Manning's document leaks had no significantstrategic impact on U.S. war efforts. The heavily redacted finalreport was not published until June 2017, after a Freedom ofInformation request by investigative reporter Jason Leopold.
Awards and tributes
In 2011, Manning was awarded a "Whistleblowerpreis"by the German Section of the International Association of Lawyersagainst Nuclear Arms and the Federation of German Scientists. Whilestill in detention in 2011, Graham Nash of Crosby, Stills and Nashreleased a song, "Almost Gone (The Ballad of BradleyManning)", in reference to her deteriorated mental state. In2012, she was awarded "People's Choice Award"awarded by Global Exchange. In 2013, she was awarded the US PeacePrize by the US Peace Memorial Foundation "for conspicuousbravery, at the risk of his own freedom, above and beyond the call ofduty." In the same year, she was awarded the Sean MacBridePeace Prize by the International Peace Bureau. In 2014, she wasawarded the Sam Adams Award by Sam Adams Associates for Integrity inIntelligence.
Icelandic and Swedish Pirate Party MPs nominated Manning andfellow whistleblower Edward Snowden for the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize.In 2013, Roots Action launched a petition nominating Manning for theprize that received more than 100,000 supporting signatures.
In May 2015, Anything to Say?, an art installation made of mobilebronze statues of Manning, Edward Snowden, and Julian Assange, wasplaced at Berlin's Alexanderplatz for a weekend, as a "monumentfor courage". Germany's Green Party sponsored the sculpturecreated by Italian sculptor Davide Dormino. Afterwards, theinstallation was moved and exhibited in different European cities.
In 2015, Paper magazine commissioned artist Heather Dewey-Hagborgto create 2D DNA phenotype portraits of Manning using DNA collectedfrom cheek swabs and hair clippings sent to the artist from theincarcerated soldier. 3D printed versions of the portraits premieredat the World Economic Forum in 2016. In the summer of 2017, Manning(by then released from prison) and Dewey-Hagborg presented theircollaboration as part of an exhibition at the Fridman Gallery in NewYork City.
In September 2017, Manning accepted the EFF Pioneer Award inrecognition of her actions as a whistleblower and for her work as anadvocate for government transparency and transgender rights. InNovember, she was named 2017 Newsmaker of the Year by Out, whichnoted her "whistle-in-the-wind tenacity that belies thetrauma she's had to contend with". Later that month, Bitchlisted her among the first-ever "Bitch 50" impactfulcreators, artists, and activists in pop culture, recognizing her as"a leading voice for transgender and healthcare rights".In December, Foreign Policy honored Manning as one of its forty-eight2017 Global Thinkers "for forcing the United States toquestion who is a traitor and who is a hero".
In October 2020, Manning shared with the German nonprofitinvestigative journalism organization CORRECT!V and Greece'sanonymous Novartis whistleblowers the third annual European UnitedLeft–Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) prize for Journalists,Whistleblowers and Defenders of the Right to Information. The GUE/NGLposted a video of her acceptance from her home in Brooklyn, New York.
Gender transition
2010
In an article written by Manning, she says her first publicappearance as female was in February 2010 while on leave from hermilitary duties; Manning was exhilarated to blend in as a woman.
2013
On August 22, 2013, the day after sentencing, Manning's attorneyissued a press release to the Today show announcing that his clientwas a female, and asked that she be referred to by her new name ofChelsea and feminine pronouns. Manning's statement included thefollowing:
As I transition into this next phase of my life, I wanteveryone 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 tobegin hormone therapy as soon as possible. I hope that you willsupport me in this transition. I also request that, starting today,you refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun (exceptin official mail to the confinement facility). I look forward toreceiving letters from supporters and having the opportunity to writeback.
The news media split in its reaction to Manning's request; someorganizations used the new name and pronouns, and others continued touse the former ones. Advocacy groups such as GLAAD, the NationalLesbian and Gay Journalists Association, and the Human RightsCampaign (HRC) encouraged media outlets to refer to Manning by herself-identified name and pronoun.
2014
In April 2014, the Kansas District Court granted a petition fromManning for a legal name change. An Army spokesman stated that whilethe Army would update personnel records to acknowledge the namechange, the military would continue to regard Manning as a male.Manning sought hormone therapy and the right to live as a woman whileconfined, consistent with her gender dysphoria, which had beenconfirmed by two Army medical specialists. Such treatment is providedin civilian federal prisons when it is found to be medicallynecessary, but it is not available in military prisons. The Pentagonpolicy at the time considered transgender individuals ineligible toserve.
In July, the Federal Bureau of Prisons rejected a request by theArmy to transfer Manning from the USDB to a civilian facility fortreatment of her gender dysphoria. Instead, the Army kept Manning inmilitary custody and said it would begin rudimentary gendertreatment, which could include allowing her to wear femaleundergarments and possibly receive hormone treatments.
On August 12, 2014, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) andManning's civilian attorney David Coombs said Manning was notreceiving treatment for her gender identity condition as previouslyapproved by Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. They notified the USDB,Hagel and other Defense Department officials that a lawsuit would befiled if they did not confirm by September 4 that treatment would beprovided. On August 22, Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Alayne Conway toldNBC News, "The Department of Defense has approved a requestby Army leadership to provide required medical treatment for aninmate diagnosed with gender dysphoria." Although Conwaywould not discuss "the medical needs of an individual",she did say, "In general terms, the initial stages oftreatment for individuals with gender dysphoria include psychotherapyand elements of the 'real life experience' therapy. Treatment for thecondition is highly individualized and generally is sequential andgraduated." The Army declined to say when treatment mightbegin.
In September, Manning filed a lawsuit in federal district court inWashington, D.C., against Secretary of Defense Hagel, claiming shehad "been denied access to medically necessary treatment"for gender dysphoria. She sued to be allowed to grow her hair longerand use cosmetics, and to receive hormone treatments "toexpress her female gender".
2015
On February 12, 2015, USA Today reported that the commandant ofthe USDB wrote in a February 5 memo, "After carefullyconsidering the recommendation that (hormone treatment) is medicallyappropriate and necessary, and weighing all associated safety andsecurity risks presented, I approve adding (hormone treatment) toInmate Manning's treatment plan." According to USA Today,Manning remained a soldier, and the decision to administer hormonetherapy was a first for the Army. Manning was not allowed to grow herhair longer. Her ACLU attorney, Chase Strangio, said that the delayin approving her hormone treatment "came with a significantcost to Chelsea and her mental health".
On March 5, in response to Manning's request for an ordercompelling the military to use pronouns that conform to her chosengender identity, the U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals ruled,"Reference to appellant in all future formal papers filedbefore this court and all future orders and decisions issued by thiscourt shall either be neutral, e.g., Private First Class Manning orappellant, or employ a feminine pronoun."
On March 14, the digital library host Cryptome posted an unsignedpublic copy of a court document, filed March 10, wherein the partiesto Manning's September 2014 lawsuit against Secretary of DefenseHagel agreed to stay proceedings for seven months, after which timethey would address how the litigation should proceed in light ofManning's status at that time. The document revealed that the Armywas then providing Manning with weekly psychotherapy, includingpsychotherapy specific to gender dysphoria; cross-sex hormonetherapy; female undergarments; the ability to wear prescribedcosmetics in her daily life at the USDB; and speech therapy.
In April 2015, Amnesty International posted online a letter fromManning in which she disclosed,
I finally began my prescribed regime of hormones to continue myoverdue gender transition in February. It's been such an amazingrelief for my body and brain to finally come into alignment with eachother. My stress and anxiety levels have tapered off quiteconsiderably. Overall, things are beginning to move along nicely.
2016
On September 13, 2016, the ACLU announced that the army would begranting Manning's request for gender transition surgery, a first fora transgender inmate. In December, Manning's attorneys reported thather military doctor refused Manning's request to change the gender onher military records to female.
2017
In January 2017, Manning wrote to The New York Times that althoughmonths had passed, she had still not seen a surgeon. At the time ofManning's release from prison in May 2017, her attorney stressed thatshe would be pursuing her own medical care and "building herlife on her own terms, separate from the military". Manningsubsequently stated via her verified Twitter account that herhealthcare from the military had stopped on May 16, 2017, and thatshe had secured a private health plan. She said her gender transitionwhile in prison had cost "only $600 over 2 years",explaining that the Department of Defense "got meds at amarkdown". Although the Army had agreed in September 2016 toallow her to have gender transition surgery, the operation was notperformed before her release.
On May 22, 2017, Manning's 2014 lawsuit seeking a federal court toorder the Defense Department to provide hormone therapy and othertreatment for her gender identity condition was dismissed because,her ACLU attorney explained, "she is free".
2018
On October 20, 2018, Manning tweeted a photograph of herself in ahospital bed reportedly recovering from gender reassignment surgery."After almost a decade of fighting," she wrote,"thru prison, the courts, a hunger strike, and thru theinsurance company—I finally got surgery this week." InMarch 2019, in the context of medical care provided during herre-incarceration, the news media continued to report that she hadundergone gender reassignment surgery. In a declaration to the UnitedStates District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia filed onMay 6, 2019, Manning formally attested that she underwent genderconfirmation surgery in October 2018.
Prison life
In March 2015, Bloomberg News reported that Manning could bevisited by only those she had named before her imprisonment, and notby journalists. She could not be photographed or give interviews oncamera. Manning was not allowed to browse the web, but could consultprint news and have access to new gender theory texts.
In April 2015, Amnesty International posted online a letter fromManning in which she described her daily life. "My days hereare busy and very routine," she wrote. "I am takingcollege correspondence courses for a bachelor's degree. I also workout a lot to stay fit, and read newspapers, magazines and books tokeep up-to-date on current events around the world and learn newthings."
Also that month, Cosmopolitan published the first interview withManning in prison, conducted by mail. Cosmo reported that Manning wasoptimistic about recent progress but said that not being allowed togrow her hair long was "painful and awkward ... I am torn up.I get through each day okay, but at night, when I'm alone in my room,I finally burn out and crash." Manning said it was "verymuch a relief" to announce that she is a woman and did notfear the public response. "Honestly, I'm not terribly worriedabout what people out there might think of me. I just try to bemyself." According to Cosmo, Manning had her own cell with"two tall vertical windows that face the sun", andcould see "trees and hills and blue sky and all the thingsbeyond the buildings and razor wire". Manning denied beingharassed by other inmates and claimed some had become confidantes.
Writing
In February 2015, Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief of Guardian US,announced that Manning had joined The Guardian as a contributingopinion writer on war, gender, and freedom of information. In 2014,The Guardian had published two op-eds by Manning: "How tomake Isis fall on its own sword" (September 16) and, "Iam a transgender woman and the government is denying my civil rights"(December 8). Manning's debut under the new arrangement,"The CIA's torturers and the leaders who approved theiractions must face the law," appeared on March 9, 2015.
In April 2015, Manning began communicating via Twitter, under thehandle @xychelsea, by using a voice phone to dictate tointermediaries, who tweeted on her behalf.
Suicide attempts
On July 5, 2016, Manning was taken to a hospital after what mediasources characterized as a suicide attempt. The following week,Manning confirmed through an attorney statement that she hadattempted to end her own life. On July 28, 2016, the ACLU announcedthat Manning was under investigation and facing several possiblecharges related to her suicide attempt. She was not allowed to havelegal representation at the disciplinary hearing for these charges.At the hearing, held on September 22, she was sentenced to 14 days insolitary confinement, with seven of those days suspendedindefinitely. Manning emerged from solitary confinement on October12, after serving seven days; she said that she was not given theopportunity to appeal the ruling before being placed in solitary.
In an article following her recovery, entitled "MovingOn", Manning reflected on her change in identity, wishingpeople to see her no longer as "Chelsea Manning, formerlyBradley Manning, a US Army Soldier... convicted...", but asa person. She used a selfie from 2008 to accompany the article.
In November 2016, Manning disclosed that she made a second suicideattempt on October 4, 2016, on the first night of her solitaryconfinement.
Hunger strike
On September 9, 2016, Manning began a hunger strike to protestwhat she described as her being bullied by prison authorities and theU.S. Government. On September 13, the ACLU announced that Manning hadended the five-day hunger strike after the Army agreed to providegender transition surgery. The operation, however, was not performedbefore her release from prison in May 2017.
Post-prison life
In a June 9, 2017, appearance on Good Morning America, her firstinterview following her release, Manning said she "acceptedresponsibility" for her actions, and thanked formerPresident Obama for giving her "another chance". Shenow earns a living through speaking engagements.
Harvard visiting fellowship and rescindment
On September 13, 2017, Manning was named a visiting fellow atHarvard University. Bill Delahunt, acting director of the HarvardInstitute of Politics, said: "Broadening the range and depthof opportunity for students to hear from and engage with experts,leaders and policy-shapers is a cornerstone of the Institute ofPolitics. We welcome the breadth of thought-provoking viewpoints onrace, gender, politics and the media." Harvard said Manningwould visit for a limited number of events meant to spark campusdiscussion, and in particular would engage students in discourse on"issues of LGBTQ identity in the military".According to online newspaper PinkNews, this marked "the onlyLGBT-related fellowship in Harvard history".
The next day Michael Morell, former deputy director and twiceacting director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), resigned asa nonresident senior fellow at Harvard's Belfer Center for Scienceand International Affairs. "Unfortunately," Morellwrote, "I cannot be part of an organization—The KennedySchool—that honors a convicted felon and leaker of classifiedinformation ... the Kennedy School's decision will assist Ms. Manningin her long-standing effort to legitimize the criminal path that shetook to prominence, an attempt that may encourage others to leakclassified information as well." Later that day, CIAdirector Mike Pompeo advised the university that he supportedMorell's decision, and withdrew from his scheduled public appearancethat evening at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.Calling Manning an "American traitor", Pompeo wrote:"While I have served my country as a soldier in the UnitedStates Army and will continue to defend Ms. Manning's right to offera defense of why she chose this path, I believe it is shameful forHarvard to place its stamp of approval upon her treasonous actions."
On September 15, 2017, Douglas Elmendorf, dean of the KennedySchool, announced that Manning had been invited to spend only asingle day at the school and that her title of visiting fellow didnot convey a special honor. "We did not intend to honor herin any way," Elmendorf wrote, "or to endorse any ofher words or deeds ... However, I now think that designating ChelseaManning as a Visiting Fellow was a mistake, for which I acceptresponsibility. ... Therefore, we are withdrawing the invitation toher to serve as a Visiting Fellow—and the perceived honor that itimplies to some people—while maintaining the invitation for her tospend a day at the Kennedy School and speak in the Forum. I apologizeto her and to the many concerned people from whom I have heard todayfor not recognizing upfront the full implications of our originalinvitation." When Elmendorf phoned Manning, a member of hersupport team challenged him to explain why Harvard was so concernedabout the title "visiting fellow". The team wasalienated by his response, which they inferred suggested she hadnothing to contribute. Manning then hung up on the dean.
On September 17, 2017, during a public appearance at The NantucketProject in Massachusetts, Manning said: "I'm not ashamed ofbeing disinvited. I view that just as much of an honored distinctionas the fellowship itself." She added, "This is amilitary intelligence and it is a police state in which we can nolonger engage in actual political discourse in our institutions."
Denied entry to Canada
On September 22, 2017, Manning was denied entry to Canada from theUnited States because of her criminal record. According to a letterfrom Canadian immigration officials, posted online by Manning, she isinadmissible due to being convicted of offenses equivalent to treasonin Canada. Manning told Reuters that she had planned to vacation inMontreal and Vancouver, but was stopped at a Quebec border crossingby the Canada Border Services Agency on the evening of September 21and detained overnight. She said she would retain a Canadian lawyerto challenge the inadmissibility finding before a Canadian tribunal.In October 2021, appearing virtually at an Immigration and RefugeeBoard hearing to determine her admissibility, Manning called thefour-year process to visit Canada "exhausting." Whenquestioned by the adjudicator, Manning did not go into detail aboutwhat she leaked because she is bound by a non-disclosure agreementwith the U.S. Government. The two-day hearing concluded with theadjudicator indicating a final written decision could be expected in2022.
Restriction on speech
During an October 8, 2017, appearance at The New Yorker Festival,Manning said she is legally unable to speak about certain detailsconcerning her leaks, confirming a July 2017 post from her verifiedTwitter account saying "technically, i cant [sic] read,comment on, discuss, or even look at any leaked material, even if itwas after 2010".
U.S. Senate candidacy
On January 11, 2018, Manning filed with the Federal ElectionCommission to run for the U.S. Senate in Maryland. On January 18,Manning filed with the Maryland State Board of Elections to challengethe state's senior senator, two-term incumbent Ben Cardin, as aDemocrat in the June 26, 2018, primary election.
On February 1, The Washington Post raised questions aboutManning's eligibility to run. "While her case is on appeal,"reported The Post, "she is on a technical form of unpaidactive duty, putting her political campaign at odds with Departmentof Defense regulations that prohibit military personnel from seekingpublic office." Military law expert Eugene R. Fidell of YaleLaw School considered it unlikely the Army would take action againsther, saying, "Services don't like to create martyrs." OnFebruary 2, Manning commented: "This is an issue that'scropped up mostly from the conservative blogosphere, and the campaignand we don't believe this is an issue at all. ... I've been issued adishonorable discharge, and I'm not sure where the issue lies in thiscase." She also confirmed that she was still appealing hercourt-martial sentence.
In mid-February, she said she had no plans to run television ads,explaining, "I can't stand watching campaign ads. We don'tneed to go to these old-media methods." Commenting on heropponent, 74-year-old incumbent Ben Cardin, she stated, "He'sold hat. He's kept this establishment going."
In May, Manning told the Associated Press that she did not, infact, consider herself a Democrat, but wanted to shake upestablishment Democrats who were "caving in" toPresident Trump. The AP noted that, despite having raised $72,000during the first quarter (compared to the incumbent's $336,000), "Thecandidate has barely made an effort at tapping sources of grassrootsenthusiasm outside of activism circles. And it's easy to findprogressive Democrats who feel her candidacy is just a vehicle toboost her profile." Manning said she would not run as anindependent should her primary bid fail.
On June 26, 2018, Manning finished second among eight Democratsvying for their party's U.S. Senate nomination in Maryland's primaryelection. Manning received 5.8% of the votes. Incumbent Ben Cardinwon renomination with 80.4% of the votes cast.
Shortly after the polls closed, Manning posted a statement on hercampaign website. "Over the past several months,"she wrote, "it has become clear that my experiences havetaken an enormous toll on my physical and emotional health. I steppedback from campaigning to prioritize my own well-being." Shethanked "the more than one thousand individual donors whogenerously contributed to our campaign," and "ourteam of hundreds of volunteers." But, she added, "afterspending hours and hours knocking on doors and making phone calls,I'm convinced that the change people truly need goes beyond what ourcorrupt two-party system is willing to offer."
Interactions with far-right social media figures
On January 20, 2018, Manning attended "A Night forFreedom" hosted by far-right social media personality MikeCernovich at the nightclub FREQ in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan. Theparty was billed, in Cernovich's words, as a "gathering ofpatriots and political dissidents who are bored with mainstreampolitical events", and included right-wing figures such asGavin McInnes, James O'Keefe, Lucian Wintrich, and Jack Posobiec.According to The Washington Post, Manning's attendance infuriated thefar-left. "What followed," The Post reported, "wasan overheated Internet tug-of-war between opposite sides of thepolitical spectrum, each accusing the other of co-opting Manning,while her intentions were relentlessly picked apart."Manning afterward stated that she was acting as a double agent,infiltrating the alt-right to gather information and insight aboutalt-right rally plans.
After first getting in touch with Cassandra Fairbanks—an admirerand writer for the right-wing website The Gateway Pundit—inSeptember 2017, Manning tapped into Fairbanks's close ties to D.C.area alt-right media influencers. In December 2017, Manningparticipated with Fairbanks, Posobiec, Wintrich, and others in Escapethe Room DC, and spent an evening drinking and playing Cards AgainstHumanity at Wintrich's apartment with him, Fairbanks, and others. "Iviewed this as an opportunity to use the celebrity and fame I'vegotten since getting out of prison," Manning told The DailyBeast in January 2018, "to gather information and toultimately find ways in which we who are against the alt-right canundermine the alt-right." She added, "The thing inall this that I've learned is that they don't actually believe thethings that they say. I just feel they're opportunists and that theyexploit their Twitter followers' fears." Manningacknowledged, however, that these incidents left many of her ownsupporters feeling betrayed. "People have every right to beconfused and hurt by this," she said. "Regardless ofgood intentions, I leveraged my privilege to gain access to spacesothers couldn't dream of entering safely. I never meant to hurt mysupporters. No amount of information on the alt-right is worth losingthe trust of my supporters."
Tour of Australia and New Zealand
In August 2018, the Government of Australia refused to issueManning a visa to enter the country, where she was scheduled to makea series of public appearances. The company arranging Manning'sspeaking tour said it would appeal the decision, taken under s501(1)of the Migration Act, which authorizes a minister to refuse a visa oncharacter grounds. The Department of Home Affairs specified thatManning did not pass the character test because of her "substantialcriminal record". On September 2, Manning spoke as scheduledat the Sydney Opera House except that she appeared onscreen live viasatellite from Los Angeles.
On August 31, Immigration New Zealand granted Manning specialdirection to apply for a work visa to enter New Zealand, statingthere was "no reason to believe Ms Manning would not complywith the terms and conditions of any visa issued". Due toher previous convictions for espionage and other offenses, Manning issubject to character provisions of the Immigration Act. Manning hadplans to tour Auckland and Wellington on September 8 and 9. PrimeMinister Jacinda Ardern defended the New Zealand Government'sdecision to allow Manning entry, stating that "we are anation that allows free speech". By contrast, thecenter-right National Party had called for Manning to be banned fromentering New Zealand on national security grounds due to herespionage and computer fraud convictions.
Career as network security consultant
In August 2021, Forbes reported that Manning had been contractedto conduct an information security audit with Nym, aSwitzerland-based for-profit cryptocurrency startup "to senddata anonymously around the Internet using the same blockchaintechnology underlying Bitcoin." Nym's CEO said, "We'dbe happy to have her stay on after the audit in whatever form shewants, but right now we need everyone laser-focused on securing ourcode."
COVID-19
On September 14, 2021, Manning tested positive for COVID-19. Shereportedly exhibited mild symptoms and would be quarantining untilOctober 1, 2021. Manning, who had previously been vaccinated, issueda statement that "vaccines work, masks work, testing works,healthcare is a right, and we all need to support each other."