"I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female."
It was a declaration. It was riveting morning television. It was a teachable moment, in public statement form, after Bradley Manning, the U.S. Army private, was convicted on charges including espionage and theft. It was, due to the identity and background of the speaker . . . complicated?
"I'm a dad," said Jay Brown, who is transgender and the director of foundation program strategies at the Human Rights Campaign. And as a parent, Brown said, he has learned "there are a lot of teachable moments that aren't exactly the moments I would first choose to be educating on."