Chelsea Manning Has Joined Twitter

Image: ChelseaManning.org

Chelsea Manning, the person behind the Wikileaks scandal, is currently serving a 35-year sentence in Leavonworth military prison after being tried in 2013 under the Espionage Act after sharing classified information. Today she joined Twitter under the handle @xychelsea, and her first tweet was posted just after noon on April 3 and then posted this:

Manning is apparently dictating her tweets over a landline phone from prison, but she said she's hoping to use the system to reply to followers as well as posting tweets, allowing for a meaningful two-way dialogue with the outside world.

Manning was also the subject of Alex Gibney's 2013 documentary, We Steal Secrets. After her conviction, Manning fought an uphill battle for hormone replacement therapy, and trans pioneer Kate Bornstein wrote an open letter to Manning that was published on Out.com and mailed to her in hopes that she may be able to read it as a balm while in prison. In February 2015, government doctors approved her request as medically necessary. She will be eligible for parole in seven years.