Harvey Milk-Research Paper
In 1977, Harvey Milk was elected as the first openly gay individual to the San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors. Although, he was defeated in his first two campaigns, he was still persistent in his work. He aspired to change the way homosexuals were treated. Before the fight for gay rights that began in the late 20th century, the way the homosexuals were regarded was abominable (“Bringing People Hope”). Milk was a politician who defended his personal rights, beliefs, and faiths not only for himself, but the entire gay community as well. He believed the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals should not differ from those of any human beings. As a gay man, Milk felt the responsibility to lead a movement to ensure equal rights for homosexuals.
Milk grew up in Woodmere, Long Island in the 1930s and had a nondescript childhood. As a teenager, Milk realized he was gay but felt compelled to keep it a secret. After attending the State University of New York at Albany, Milk entered the United States Navy. Following his time in the military, Milk had a numerous amount of different jobs, including teaching in a high school, however none having to do with politics. However, once he realized the inferior treatment of the gay community, he ended up becoming politically involved. This was when he realized that he didn’t care what the public thought about gay individuals. He decided that it was time to live openly gay. He moved to San Francisco in 1972 with his partner because Milks partner, Jack Galen McKinley, was hired as stage director for the musical Hair (“Harvey Milk Biography Encyclopedia”). They opened up a camera shop on Castro Street, the hub of San Francisco...
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...Milk’s Legacy Is Progress.” SFGate [San Francisco] 22 May 2012: n. pag. Sfgate. Web. 6 Nov. 2013. .
Kuhn, Betsy. Gay Power!: The Stonewall Riots and the Gay Rights Movement. Minneapolis: Twenty First Century, 2011. Print.
Milk, Stuart. “Harvey’s Enduring Legacy.” The Criterion Collection. N.p., 22 Mar. 2011. Web. 6 Nov. 2013. .
Rosmaita, Gregory J. “Harvey Milk’s Political Empowerment of the Gay Community.” The Gay Rights Movement. Ed. Jennifer Smith. Farmington Hills: Greenhaven, 2003. 79-89. Print.
Verger, Michelle. “Harvey Milk Day: Lessons Learned.” Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. N.p., 22 May 2013. Web. 26 Nov. 2013. .
...protest movements throughout America and the world.” Among the gay community Stonewall has become the word for freedom, for fighting, for equality. It became a turning point in Gay history, so much so that most books on the subject refer to “pre-Stonewall” and “post-Stonewall” as the lines of demarcation. Of course the journey is still long and fight has not been won. At the turn of the century there were still 20 states that made homosexual sex illegal , any only a few states would recognize the love and companionship of gays through marriage or civil unions. The military policy of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is still active and prejudices continue to exist. But, as exemplified by any other civil rights movement, it is through the constant grind of activists and lay-people constantly protesting and educating, that change occurs, even if only one person at a time.
The Times of Harvey Milk suggests that the experiences of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people in the 1980s and 1990s reflect on the dangers of visibility. While the election of the first openly gay politician, Harvey Milk, was a first, representing change in it’s own, the murder of Harvey Milk spoke even louder, specifically the short amount of time his murderer, Dan White, was sentenced. The film suggests that while being openly gay at the time, while accepted by some, remained and still remains a danger. Public leaders within the movement experienced violence, discrimination, and in Harvey Milk’s case murder. Even so, it is shown that with every injustice the community grows bigger and stronger, never losing the support of its community and allies. This is shown in the film by the silent, candlelight parade of 45,000 people on the night of the murder, followed by an angry, violent, riot following the sentencing of his murderer. Though Milk was murdered, a decade before he would have never been elected, he wouldn’t have had support, this was a pivotal point in the growth of the movement.
The Mayor of Castro Street is an inspiring yet emotional and tragic story that takes a look at Harvey Milk’s life and the way it influenced the Gay Liberation Movement. The book goes into detail about Harvey as a person and how that affected his political campaign. In this review I’ll be going over what the book was about, the fear gay people felt and how unfair things were for people in the LGBT community in the 1970’s.
The stonewall riots happened june 28, 1969. It took place in the the Stonewall inn which is located in Greenwich Village which is a neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. “The stonewall inn is widely known as the birthplace of the modern LGBT rights movement and holds a truly iconic place in history” (gaycitynews). This means that the Stonewall riots was the event that started the gay rights movement. This is saying that The Stonewall is where the gay rights movement started for gay people to have same rights has anyone else. It all started with A number of incidents that were happening simultaneously. “There was no one thing that happened or one person, there was just… a flash of group, of mass anger”(Wright). This means that everything was happening at once and a bunch of people were angry. People in the crowd started shouting “Gay Power!” “And as the word started to spread through Greenwich Village and across the city, hundreds of gay men and lesbians, black, white, Hispanic, and predominantly working class, converged on the Christopher Street area around the Stonewall Inn to join the fray”(Wright). So many gay and lesbian people were chanting “gay power” . “The street outside the bar where the rebellion lasted for several day and night in june”(gaycitynews). so the stonewall riot lasted many days and
It was possible to see the transformation from materialistic to concerned that Milkman underwent. By coming to terms with his roots, Milkman was able to become whole; to become comfortable with who and what he was. Knowledge is power, and having a name and a history are two of the most powerful things one can do. Works Cited and Consulted Bloom, Harold, ed., pp.
The media considers the1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City the spark of the modern gay rights movement. This occurred after the police raided the Stonewall bar, a popular gay bar in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village. Allyn argues that the new energy and militancy generated by the riot played a crucial role in creating the gay liberation movement. Arguably, the Stonewall Riots have come to resemble the pivotal moment in gay rights history largely because it provided ways for the gay community to resist the social norms. In fact, the riots increased public awareness of gay rights activism (Allyn 157). Gay life after the Stonewall riots, however, was just as varied and complex as it was before. In the following era, ho...
Harvey Milk used his influence to give a voice to those who were quiet and when he was killed, his voice was not just taken from him, but many others who didn’t have a platform. He finally won a seat in government after losing two elections. Milk’s diligence gave the LGBT community
. Gianoulis, Tina. "Gay Liberation Movement." In St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture., edited by Thomas Riggs, 438-43. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: St. James, 2013. Gale Virtual Reference Library (GALE|CX2735801056).
...n Duberman, and Martha Vicinus, eds. Hidden From History: Reclaiming the Gay & Lesbian past. New York: Penguin Group, 1990.
One of the world’s greatest social movements known as the Gay Rights Movement stemmed in the late 1960’s in America. After events known as the Stonewall riots, the Gay Rights Movement gradually became increasingly influential and empowering for all sexual minorities and gender identities.
Harvey Milk said, “If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.”(Aretha 83). Harvey Milk was the first gay politician that moved people’s hearts. He changed the way people thought about gay people back in the 1970’s. Defending homosexuals from criticism, he civilized them with the people. Since the background of homosexuality was harsh which affected Harvey Milk’s early life, he took the action to process of becoming civilized as an officer, and he left many legacies.
The Stonewall Riots marked the start of the gay rights movement, and inspired members of the gay community to fight for their rights instead of being condemned for their sexuality. Even today, gay people in the US use the incident at Stonewall to educate younger members of the gay community. "The younger generation should know about Stonewall so that they will realize it is possible to make change. It is possible to overcome entrenched, institutionalized prejudice, discrimination, and bigotry. And that they can live full equal lives." (Frank Kameny, aarp.org) This is the message that many members of the gay community continue to spread after the incident at the Stonewall Inn.
The history of the gay rights movement goes as far back as the late 19th century. More accurately, the quest by gays to search out others like themselves and foster a feeling of identity has been around since then. It is an innovative movement that seeks to change existing norms and gain acceptance within our culture. By 1915, one gay person said that the gay world was a "community, distinctly organized" (Milestones 1991), but kept mostly out of view because of social hostility. According to the Milestones article, after World War II, around 1940, many cities saw their first gay bars open as many homosexuals began to start a networking system. However, their newfound visibility only backfired on them, as in the 1950's president Eisenhower banned gays from holding federal jobs and many state institutions did the same. The lead taken by the federal government encouraged local police forces to harass gay citizens. "Vice officers regularly raided gay bars, sometimes arresting dozens of men and women on a single night" (Milestones). In spite of the adversity, out of the 1950s also came the first organized groups of gays, including leaders. The movement was small at first, but grew exponentially in short periods of time. Spurred on by the civil rights movement in the 1960s, the "homophile" (Milestones) movement took on more visibility, picketing government agencies and discriminatory policies. By 1969, around 50 gay organizations existed in the United States. The most crucial moment in blowing the gay rights movement wide open was on the evening of July 27, 1969, when a group of police raided a gay bar in New York City. This act prompted three days of rioting in the area called the Stonewall Rio...
“The unprecedented growth of the gay community in recent history has transformed our culture and consciousness, creating radically new possibilities for people to ‘come out’ and live more openly as homosexuals”(Herdt 2). Before the 1969 Stonewall riot in New York, homosexuality was a taboo subject. Research concerning homosexuality emphasized the etiology, treatment, and psychological adjustment of homosexuals. Times have changed since 1969. Homosexuals have gained great attention in arts, entertainment, media, and politics. Yesterday’s research on homosexuality has expanded to include trying to understand the different experiences and situations of homosexuals (Ben-Ari 89-90).
Bawer, Bruce. A Place at the Table: The Gay Individual in American Society. New York: Poseidon, 1993. Print.