Bradley Manning was sentenced to 35 years for sharing documents with WikiLeaks. The sentence was lower than the 60 years the US government argued for–and Manning will be eligible for parole in about 12 years.

There’s been a lot to learn from the trial. There’s also a lot to take away about Manning’s motivations from a statement released today. The statement seems at least partially rooted in a racial justice framework. It reads, in part:

Our nation has had similar dark moments for the virtues of democracy–the Trail of Tears, the Dred Scott decision, McCarthyism, the Japanese-American internment camps–to name a few.  I am confident that many of our actions since 9/11 will one day be viewed in a similar light. 

You can read the statement in its entirety over at Common Dreams.