Chelsea Manning on Thursday released a photo on Instagram of her new look a day after being released from prison.
“Okay, so here I am everyone!!” wrote Manning, who was convicted of orchestrating one of the biggest intelligence leaks in United States history.
Manning was freed from military prison on Wednesday.
Manning’s 35-year sentence, which was due to end in 2045, was commuted by former President Barack Obama in January.
“For the first time, I can see a future for myself as Chelsea,” Manning said in a statement last week just before being released. “I can imagine surviving and living as the person who I am and can finally be in the outside world.”
Manning, who was born Bradley Manning, insisted on being called Chelsea, and began hormone treatments to become a female just a day after being sentenced in 2013.
A former U.S. soldier and intelligence analyst, Manning was convicted of 20 charges in connection with leaking more than 500,000 pages of classified documents to WikiLeaks. The first material from Manning was posted online in February 2010.
Manning is still undergoing hormone treatment, and will remain an active-duty soldier as an Army private. Manning’s court-martial conviction is still under appeal.
Okay, so here I am everyone!! . . #HelloWorldA post shared by Chelsea E. Manning (@xychelsea87) on May 18, 2017 at 9:55am PDT
