Bradley Manning - P 2013
Getty ImagesArmy intelligence analyst Bradley Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison early Wednesday after being found guilty of 20 crimes, including six violations of the Espionage Act.
Manning’s sentence is the stiffest punishment ever handed out in the U.S. for leaking information to the media. The decision added fuel to the debate about whether the leaker was a whistleblower or a traitor for giving classified military documents and footage to WikiLeaks.
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Manning’s supporters, including many stars, took to social media to express their opinions. Lady Gaga, John Cusack, Patton Oswalt, Tom Morello and comedian John Fugelsang were among those defending Manning, with Morello tweeting a link to an Amnesty International petition to give Manning clemency.
Cusack posted several tweets about Manning’s situation. Meanwhile, Moby took to Instagram to post a photo message of support.
“Bradley Manning” was still trending on Twitter in New York as late as 7 p.m. ET amid reports that his lawyer will seek a presidential pardon.
Here’s what Hollywood had to say about Manning:
The news of Bradley Manning’s sentencing is devastating. If our own can’t speak up about injustice who will? How will we ever move forward?
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) August 21, 2013
Bradley Manning got 35 YEARS and Rumsfeld/Cheney still walk free…oh wait, it’s Opposite Day. My bad. #Manning
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) August 21, 2013
And mass murdered RT @AmberLyon: Bradley Manning Headed To Prison, While Those Who Presided Over Torture Go Free: http://t.co/ukmOUXCykL
— John Cusack (@johncusack) August 21, 2013
Bradley Manning endangers our troops in war zones, say the pols who sent our troops to war zones. pic.twitter.com/c2y64IxK3K
— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) August 21, 2013
Bradley Manning goes to jail for exposing war crimes nobody’s ever going to jail for. #p2 #tcot #uniteblue #libcrib
— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) August 21, 2013
“@SaveBradley: 30 days to get 100K signatures on Amnesty Int’l petition for clemency for Bradley Manning. Plz RT http://t.co/5WZ0gfRNnW“
— Tom Morello (@tmorello) August 21, 2013
