(TIME warp): Harvey Milk A True Gay Hero, BORN 88 yrs ago This Week!

Throughout modern history there have been few individuals who could honestly say that they brought about positive change in the world. This number is even fewer in gay history. Harvey Milk is one of these few. Born on May 22 1930, Harvey was the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the US and possibly one of the greatest catalysts the gay rights movement has ever known.




Milk believed in the power of community and decided it was time for the homosexuals to realise their power and to have council representation. He ran for the position of city supervisor in 1973. His campaign was theatrical and loud, dubbing himself the “Mayor of Castro Street”. Sadly defeated, Harvey didn’t give up and ran for two more consecutive years finally winning the election and becoming the country’s first openly gay council member.


Harvey Milk and City Mayor George Moscone were brutally slain by disgruntled colleague Dan White on November 27 1978 but his legacy lives on. Through the direction of Gus Van Sant, the Story of Harvey Milk’s fight for recognition and acceptance is visualized for a new generation who have lived with the freedom and rights that Milk and so many others fought for.