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“Milk Foundation.Org.” Milk Foundationorg RSS, milkfoundation.org/about/harvey-milk-biography/.

"Harvey Milk." World of Criminal Justice, Gale, 2002. Biography in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K2425100247/BIC1?u=tryitilk12&xid=5666cdd9. Accessed 31 Oct. 2017.

"Harvey Milk." Gay & Lesbian Biography, edited by Michael J. Tyrkus and Michael Bronski, St. James Press, 1997. Biography in Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1634000190/BIC1?u=tryitilk12&xid=c6292fae. Accessed 31 Oct. 2017.

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                                      Harvey Milk

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                                      Harvey Milk

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the first openly gay elected official in the history      of The United States and LGBT crusader

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A visionary human and civil rights advocate becoming the first openly gay elected official in the United States. Milk's unapologetic proclamation of his authentic self as a gay individual offered never before hope for lesbian, gay, and transgender individuals, among other members of the LGBT community during a time of widespread discrimination.

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Harvey Milk was born May 22, 1930 in Woodmere, New York, into a middle-class Jewish family. Harvey knew he was gay by the time he attended high school, setting the scene for the remaining of his life.

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Milk studied math and history at New York State College for Teachers (now State University of New York), where he wrote a popular student newspaper column challenging cultural diversity issues and reflected lessons from the recently ended World War.  He attended Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island, after graduating the New York State College for Teachers in 1951, where he served as a diving instructor. He resigned at the rank of lieutenant junior grade in 1955 after being officially questioned about his sexual orientation.

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In late 1972, Milk opened a camera store on Castro Street, San Francisco, the heart of the growing gay community.  He quickly became a neighborhood figure because of his humor and theatricality. In 1974, after merchants tried preventing two gay men from opening a store, Milk and several other businesses collectively founded the Castro Village Association. The Association was the first in the nation made up of predominately LGBT businesses, Milk representing as the president. He organized the Castro Street Fair, to attract more customers to the business area. Due to its success, the Castro Village Association became an effective power for gay merchants and inspired LGBT communities across the country.

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Harvey Milk ran for local office multiple times, his first two times narrowly losing. In 1975, he did his second run for a San Francisco City/County supervisor seat, which he unfortunately lost. But after this run, he became a powerful, established, spokesmen for the vibrant local gay community. The mayor of San Francisco, George Moscone, and ally and close friend of Harvey Milk, then appointed him to the city’s Board of Permit Appeals, officially making Milk the first openly gay commissioner in the United States.

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After filing candidacy papers for the state assembly and lost the race to represent the Sixteenth Assembly, Milk realized he needed to utilize the support from the voters on Castro Street to win. He worked with his campaign manager and the mayor to pass an amendment to replace at-large elections with district elections for the Board of Supervisors. With this now in effect, Milk was able to win in 1977 and was inaugurated on January 9, 1978 as a San Francisco City-County Supervisor. His victory was broadcasted nationally and internationally.

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Milk did not only represent the LGBT community, but worked to help  women, racial and ethnic minorities, among others. He quickly became a popular supervisor as he worked towards beneficial laws and bills. His agenda included establishing day care centers for working mothers, reform of the tax code to attract industry to deserted warehouses and factories, the conversion of military facilities in the city to low-cost housing, and of course  protecting gay rights, he sponsoring an important anti-discrimination bill.

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During Milk's time in office, there was a ballot initiative, Proposition 6, "which would have mandated the firing of gay teachers in the state’s public schools," and those who supported gay rights, proposed by State Senator John Briggs. Milk's strong and aggressive opposition to the Proposition 6 proved effective, when in was defeated in a time when political power was successfully used to attack gays across the US. That June, gay pride swelled in San Francisco and Los Angeles to campaign against Senator Briggs. Milk gave a memorable speech at pride, resonating with members of the gay community everywhere.

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“Gay people, we will not win our rights by staying quietly in our closets. … We are coming out to fight the lies, the myths, the distortions. We are coming out to tell the truths about gays, for I am tired of the conspiracy of silence, so I’m going to talk about it. And I want you to talk about it. You must come out.”

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On November 27, 1978, Harvey Milk was shot and killed by former city Supervisor, Dan White, along with Mayor George Moscone. That night, thousands gathered on Castro Street and held a silent candlelight vigil, marching to city hall. The vigil is recognized as "one of the most eloquent responses to violence that a community has ever expressed."

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Dan White was acquitted and given a mild sentence of manslaughter, because of the claim "the twinkie defense." White's lawyer claimed he had eaten too much junk food the day of the murders, causing him to not think properly, and could not be accountable for his crimes. White was sentenced to 8 years in prison. This ignited what came to be known as the White Night Riots. Citizens stormed city hall, where police cars were set on fire. The police retaliated by vandalizing gay businesses and beating citizens on Castro Street. The city suffered much damage.

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Given the several death threats and hate Harvey Milk had received, he was well aware of his chances of being assassinated. He made a rewrote and taped several version of his will, "to be read in the event of my assassination." One the the tapes contained one of his most well known statements, "If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door."