I hope you can find a few moments to commemorate Harvey Milk and his work today. Harvey Bernard Milk was born on Long Island, New York on May 22nd 1930. He was assassinated in San Francisco on November 27th 1978 the same day as mayor George Moscone at City Hall by former San Francisco Board of Supervisors member Dan White.
After graduating from New York State College, Milk served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. After his discharge, Milk worked as a financial analyst in New York City. In 1972, Milk moved to San Francisco and opened a camera store in the Castro District of the city. He soon became a popular figure in the LGBTQ community as he challenged the San Francisco gay community’s conservative leaders for their sluggish attitude towards gaining civil rights for gay people.
“Never take an elevator in city hall.”–Harvey Milk
The year after his arrival in the city, Milk ran an unsuccessful campaign for a seat on the Board of Supervisors. After one more unsuccessful run, Milk was finally elected in 1977. He became one of the first openly gay elected officials in U.S. History. He served as a Supervisor member until his assassination in 1978.
In 2009, Milk was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Finally, Lieutenant Junior Grade, Harvey Milk received another honor. In 2021, the U.S. Navy launched the USNS Harvey Milk. The fleet oiler ship was the first U.S. Navy vessel named for an openly gay person.
During the ship’s christening ceremony, Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said, “For far too long, sailors like Lieutenant Milk were forced into the shadows or, worse yet, forced out of our beloved Navy.”
{resource material: “Encyclopedia Britannica”}
Ciao
The Blue Jay of Happiness quotes Harvey Milk. “If we wish to rebuild our cities, we must first rebuild our neighborhoods. And to do that, we must understand that the quality of life is more important than the standard of living.”
bluejayblog 
Here’s to you, Harvey Milk. We remember your humanity.
Indeed!
One step forwards, two steps back. I have seen a lot of changes in my lifetime, from party line phones to individual cell phones that can travel everyehere with you. I don’t think all our technological advances are good for us, but becoming better, more accepting humans is a must. We allowed religions to have too great an influence on us for far too long. I don’t care if people believe, but confine your beliefs to your own life.
Everyone has the right to be who they want to be, and do what they want to do — or not — as long as no one gets intentionally hurt in the process. (An old hippie theme, slightly reworked.)
I have no idea how to celebrate Harvey Milk Day, but I am glad he lived. He took us at least two steps forward.
One can celebrate Harvey Milk in a similar manner that we can salute such people as Sacagawea, Sitting Bull, or Martin Luther King, Jr. They all had a grand vision for the people.
tna Gandhi. Both men made great changes in their nbations, and yet both were asassinated for being great. Even as Harvey Milk was. Humans seem to prefer to destroy rather than to build — and that is on us!
Hmmm. Whole sentences went missing. I’m not sure exactly what I said, but part of it was something like “I have two heroes in life, Stephen Biko and Mahatma Gandhi…”
(Not sure what happened!)
I think I caught your drift.
But I had to clarify.
Word Press depresses me some days.
I honestly hadn’t heard of Harvey Milk until the movie was released. He does deserve to be remembered. Maggie
He was a trailblazer.
Thanks for this memorial. Harvey Milk was a good man, a leader, and a caring human.
He was an authentic person.