WHO WAS HARVEY MILK?

Harvey Milk

LET'S TALK ABOUT

Milk ran for the Board of Supervisors again, and won in 1977. He become a San Francisco Supervisor in January of 1978. His inauguration into this role was a huge symbolic victory for the LGBTQ+ community. Milk was a popular supervisor for his commitment to serving all his constituents,. Milk’s agenda included protecting LGBTQ+ rights, setting up day care centers for working mothers, converting military facilities into affordable housing, as well as other issues.

Milk ran for a Supervisor seat again in 1975, but unfortunately lost again. However, he was now well-known as a spokesman for the Castro Street gay community, and he was appointed by his friend Mayor George Moscone to the San Francisco Board of Permit Appeals, making him the first openly gay city commissioner in the United States.

Harvey Milk was a civil and human rights leader who became one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States in 1977 when he won a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Milk was born in 1930 in Woodmere, New York, and knew he was gay from a young age. Milk served in the U.S. Navy, but resigned after being officially question about his sexual orientation. After the Navy, Milk worked a a schoolteacher, a stock analyst, and a production associate on Broadway. However, during the 60s and 70s, he became more involved in politics and activism.

In 1972, Milk moved to San Francisco and opened a store in the center of the city’s gay community. He became well-known and well-liked by the community members, and just over a year after arriving in San Francisco, he ran for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He lost that race, but became respected in local politics. When merchants tried to prevent gay men from opening a store, Milk and a few other businesses founded an association with Milk serving as president.

In November 1978, less than a year after Milk was inaugurated into his role as Supervisor, he and Mayor Moscone were assassinated by disgruntled former city Supervisor Dan White. Unfortunately, White was only given a short sentence for manslaughter, and was sentenced to less than 8 years in prison.

Information sourced from the Milk Foundation webpage