Harvey Milk Gay Rights

The movement of the gay and lesbian population in the United States is one that has been in progress since the early 1900s, and is still facing overwhelming controversy and backlash today. The push for gay liberation in a country founded on Christian morals and beliefs has subsequently led to struggles over equality of marriage, adoption, jobs, and healthcare. One side of the controversy argues that every individual deserves the same rights, while the opposing mindset argues that being homosexual puts you into a group of people that is different, and will therefore be treated as such.

Harvey Milk, though he had “known since high school that he was gay” (Biography), was initially outwardly ambivalent to legislation passed against the LGBTQ community. This all changed after he befriended a group of “gay radicals” in his mid-forties. They propelled him into the politically charged world of activism, in which he developed his voice, and stood out as a leader in the LGBTQ community. Milk stood on the steps of the San Francisco’s City Hall to celebrate Gay Freedom, but also to

Homosexual people have been misrepresented and refuted their basic civil rights in America over the years, especially during the late 1970s. During this time, Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California, was one of the most prominent spokesman on the issues surrounding gay rights. In 1978 he gave a speech impacting the gay citizens of San Francisco and America, the anti-gay right wing movement supporters, straight allies of the gay movement, and politicians in general. His speech known as the “Hope Speech” resonates with people even today as Milk attempted to address gay rights and the importance of electing gay officials in office, using various rhetorical strategies such as pathos, logos, and elevated diction.

Gays were forced to stay under the shadow. They were afraid to show their own true colors. Harvey Milk was a gay activist who had encouraged people to come out of the closet and join their organization to fight for their rights. He says “Burst down those closet doors and stand up once and for all, and start to fight.” (Document G) In the the quote he explains that people who are scared and haven’t come out of the closet should and help join the movement for equal rights for homosexuals. Harvey Milk’s encouragement had a big impact in the past organizations, his voice and words have impacted the LGBT society in a big way. In document H it shows how people were doing riots to express how they felt. This helped make people aware of their movement and what they want. They were able to express how they felt through these riots. Today, all these riots and LGBT activist work have made an everlasting impact. They had finished their goal and had legalized gay marriage, something they have been fighting for a long time. Even though they face discrimination, they have had made a huge step for equality because of their hard work in the past and

Harvey Milk was one of the first openly gay officials in the U.S in 1977 who was unjustly assassinated because of jealousy and his lifestyle;however, others that disagree with his choices think he deserved to die. Harvey Milk was murdered do to political reasons and differences in opinion. Some people argue that he was murdered instead of assassinated.

This riot was historically significant because many gay men and lesbians began to join the political scene and started advocating equality. In 1977, Harvey Milk became the first openly gay person to win a major

If I ask you to think of a major civil rights supporter, you might say Martin Luther King Jr., or Rosa Parks. Emmett Till may be one of the most undiscovered stories that made the most impact. Emmett Till, an African-American, was deliberately murdered by Roy Bryant and his half-brother, two white Americans, after flirting with Roy’s wife, Carolyn, and later the brothers were ruled innocent by an all-white jury which did not allow any blacks on it, proving that this is a big social injustice which sparked the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s until now. (Crowe) (Smith)

Another prominent figure was Martin Luther King Jr. He had a seismic impact on race relations in the United States, beginning in the mid-1950s. Unfortunately, he was assassinated in 1968. King always called for peaceful non-violent demonstrations. He was a much respected

However, gay activism was not an interest to him; until he was 40, after experiencing the counterculture of the 1960s. Milk was not open about his homosexuality in until he moved from New York to San Francisco and became a politician. Harvey Milk took advantage of the political and economic influence of the neighborhood to promote his interests. He ran for political office three times until he won his seat as a city supervisor in 1977. He served almost a year in office until his assassination in 1978. In his brief political career, Milk’s acts toward justice for the LGBT community deserves to be looked at for the hope of some degree of peace and

He revolutionized the way we govern our major cities by advocating for the common man and giving voices to the disenfranchised. He changed the country’s political climate into one in which many closeted gays gained the courage to come out. He also served as the unwavering advocate of the disenfranchised and struck down laws that would produce institutionalized inequality. Harvey Milk has posthumously inspired a generation of activists to create systematic change, provide funding, and create programs for the benefit of the world’s LGBT youth and for minorities at large. [I can definitely edit this to be shorter if you think it should be] Before he died, Harvey Milk stated [that] “If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet shatter every closet door”(Bringing People Hope 4). Many have wondered if he truly how powerful his death could be. In my case, I vividly remember hearing about Harvey milk and racing home from catholic school to learn about this openly gay politician. I found it impossible to believe that someone like me could be honest about who they are, and not only be accepted but elected to public office. I remember the intense hope and vindication I felt while reading an online biography dedicated to this man whom I now considered to be a legend. Imagine my anguish when my eyes first skimmed over the word “assassinated”. After processing this tragedy, I came to the following conclusion. In my mind this man had not only been accepted for who he was, but he also died for my right to be who I am. I felt then as I do now, that because of Harvey Milk, I have a responsibility to be honest about who I

Courage is defined as the strength to withstand danger, to venture into the unknown, and to persevere in spite of difficulties that one may face. Marsha P. Johnson, a transgender woman of color who lived during the civil rights movement, is credited for throwing the first brick during the Stonewall Riots of 1969. Her choice to stand against police brutality in a time when most psychiatrists still viewed any break of the status quo as an issue or mental illness would eventually lead to the reformation of detrimental and unjust Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) policies and the nullification of sodomy laws. Another individual of outstanding prowess was Harvey Milk. Milk was an American politician and the first openly gay elected

It is through his actions that James Baldwin displays political courage. Baldwin wrote a series of essays that discussed easy to understand but long ignored issues such as race, sexuality, and class distinction in Western Society. Some of his

Milk processed to make homosexuals civilized by getting attention, stepping out, and making his clear point to everyone. He was trying to be the leader of politics to announce the gay rights to everyone. Visiting houses, volunteering, and shaking hands, he grabbed many attentions and got appeals. His speech emphasized on being proud and open. Milk compared gay rights movement to civil rights movement and wanted to prove that he can make a change like in the civil rights movement. He begun campaign for gay men in August 1973. Because he was gay, there were many oppositions, and it

He did most of this work in the Midwest, a very different environment from Harvey Milk’s San Francisco. While Milk turned the already urban and liberal Castro into a haven for the gay community, Kieschnick was one of the first to promote gay rights in the Midwest. Part of the reason so many gays were out in San Francisco was that Milk encouraged them to come out, believing that their cause would be aided if everyone realized they knew someone gay. This had not reached the Midwest, and for many students, Kieschnick was the first gay person they had ever met. The San Franciscans in Milk really did know about gays, but they cannot be compared to rural Midwesterners.

Perhaps, the most well known of these was Martin Luther King Jr. MLK was about gaining equality and human rights for African Americans, but doing so in a peaceful way; that’s why so many people admired him and what he preached. He led many campaigns throughout much of the 1960’s which began to slowly gain results. One of the major things MLK and his followers were campaigning for was a civil rights bill to be passed. Many walks, rallies, and protests were held in order to get then president, John F. Kennedy, to propose the bill and have it pass. In the year of 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama the climax of the civil rights campaign was reached, forcing JFK to commit to proposing a civil rights bill. However, because of how big and radical this campaign was, MLK was arrested and made to spend the night in a Birmingham jail. There he wrote a letter in response to an advertisement from white clergy asking him to shut down the campaign. In the letter, MLK explains why African Americans were campaigning for this and that they wouldn’t stop until they achieved what they had been working so diligently for (13). As a result of the campaign in Birmingham and the letter MLK had written, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. The act banned public and private discrimination against African Americans and any other racial, ethnic or minority group. It also banned excluding someone from a job or a public