Chelsea Manning, Whistleblower, and Courage of a Lion!

Today, at long last, Chelsea Manning is free. After seven difficult years, she is finally returning to a world that was forever changed by her courage. Today is surely a day to celebrate; a piece of truly good news amidst all the disturbing headlines. But our efforts do not, and cannot end here.

Chelsea is one of the most important and most punished whistleblowers in history. She chose her conscience over her freedom, and was made to pay a terrible price. Enduring solitary confinement, and conditions tantamount to torture, her punishment was longer and harsher by far than any other whistleblower. And though she has been released, the sentence hangs over her still. It was commuted, not pardoned, by President Obama. This failure of justice represents an ongoing danger as a precedent against future truth tellers.

That is why we are asking you to support the Courage Foundation’s fundraising campaign for her legal appeal. Chelsea is a whistleblower NOT a spy. For her sake, and for others that may come after her, we should fight to clear her name.

Chelsea is an inspiration to us at WHISPeR. I and my colleague, Kathleen McClellan, were the only whistleblower & human rights attorneys to attend her court martial. This, in addition to the fundamental unfairness of her trial and the inhumanity of her treatment, underscored the deep need for the work that we do. A successful appeal for Chelsea would greatly improve the situation for whistleblowers and our ability to protect them.

If you can, I hope you’ll make a contribution:

Thank you,

Jesselyn Radack
Director
Whistleblower & Source Protection Program (WHISPeR)
ExposeFacts

Twitter: @JesselynRadack