“THANK YOU,” Harvey Milk in front of Castro Camera, San Francisco, California, November
“THANK YOU,” Harvey Milk in front of Castro Camera, San Francisco, California, November 1977. On November 8, 1977, thirty-nine years ago today, in his fourth attempt at elected office, Harvey Milk was elected to San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors, making him the first openly gay man elected in the United States. “I’m a symbol of hope for gays and all minorities,” Milk said. “My election, against the odds, shows that the system can work and that there is hope.” While Milk was the first openly gay man elected to office, he was not the first open LGBT person elected, nor was he the first openly gay man to serve. In 1974, Kathy Kozachenko, an open lesbian, was elected to Ann Arbor’s city council; her predecessors, Nancy Weschler and Jerry DeGrieck, came out after being elected, making them the first openly gay people to serve as elected officials. Also in 1974, Elaine Noble was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, making her the first openly gay person elected to a statewide position. Because Harvey Milk was openly gay when he first ran for office in 1973, some argue that he therefore was the first person to be elected who was openly gay while running. Despite this academic debate, there is no question that Milk’s election carried more meaning than those of the previous LGBT officials; this was due, in large part, to the fact that Milk more visibly carried the mantle of the gay community than those that came before. #lgbthistory #lgbtherstory #lgbttheirstory #lgbtpride #QueerHistoryMatters #HavePrideInHistory (at Castro Camera) -- source link
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