Supporters ‘Ecstatic’ After Obama Commutes Chelsea Manning’s Sentence | Common Dreams | Breaking News & Views for the Progressive Community

President Barack Obama has commuted noted whistleblower Chelsea Manning’s prison sentence, and Manning will be released on May 17 of this year.

While Manning was reportedly on Obama’s short list for commutations, many were shocked that the president—notorious for dealing harshly with whistleblowers—followed through.

Human rights defenders, government watchdogs, and LGBTQ advocates have long been pushing Obama to commute Manning’s 35-year sentence, particularly as Manning, who is transgender and is being denied appropriate healthcare in military prison, has attempted suicide twice in the past six months.

“I’m relieved and thankful that the president is doing the right thing and commuting Chelsea Manning’s sentence,” said Chase Strangio, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBT Project representing Manning, in a statement.

(http://www.commondreams.org/news/2017/01/17/breaking-news-obama-commutes-chelsea-mannings-sentence