Bradley Manning, the US soldier who is being accused of supplying classified military documents to Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks, appeared in front of a military court on 17 December 2011. Using a rather unusual strategy, his defence team argues that Manning has been experiencing issues regarding gender identity and sexual orientation, which have made Manning emotionally fragile and unstable. It will be very interesting, for Manning and other people experiencing issues with gender identity and sexual orientation, to see how the US legal system will deal with these statements.

Same-sex sexual orientation and the military are two topics that have a turbulent history. Bill Clinton’s policy of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was only abolished by President Obama earlier this year, which obviously doesn’t make it any easier for individuals with same-sex sexual preference to serve in the US military. The fact that Bradley Manning experienced difficulties with his sexual orientation whilst serving in the army is not surprising. Stories of gay, lesbian and bisexual individuals experiencing difficulties in the military have made the news in multiple cases over the years. Something that is more surprising to be brought up in this context are Manning’s gender identity struggles. Although sexual orientation and the army have a known and troubled history, the history of gender identity issues and the army constitutes somewhat of a dark spot. Continue reading Bradley Manning: Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Issues →