Nancy Pelosi speaks out about Harvey Milk Day

Democratic Leader of the US Congress, Nancy Pelosi:





For more info on Harvey Milk day, check out the Harvey Milk Foundation's Harvey Milk Day website here.

There's a wonderful Oscar-winning documentary, a great Oscar-winning biopic, and here's one of my favorite Harvey Milk speech excerpts:



Let's celebrate Harvey Milk Day by allowing ourselves to be trail-blazers for equality, too!

Namaste,
Lee

Today Is Harvey Milk Day!

Here's the official website for Harvey Milk Day:





Let's celebrate Harvey's legacy by fighting for the equality of all of us, and giving others hope!

Namaste,
Lee

The Harvey Milk Story - A Gay Civil Rights Hero Non-Fiction Picture Book

By Kari Krakow, Illustrated by David Gardner

"On a rainy day in January, on the steps of San Francisco's City Hall, Harvey Milk was sworn into office, the first openly gay elected city official in the United States of America. Harvey Milk had made history."

It's the life story of the civil rights leader.

And oh, how it would have changed my life if this picture book had been read to me when I was a child!

Add your review of The Harvey Milk Story in comments!

Sunday is Harvey Milk Day in California... A Little History (His Story) And ACTION Can Empower Us All!

"What set Harvey apart from you or me was that he was a visionary. He imagined a righteous world inside his head and then he set about to create it for real, for all of us."

-Anne Kronenberg, Harvey Milk's final campaign manager

California is honoring Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected public official in California.

Tragically, Harvey was assassinated. But we can honor his memory by continuing his fight for equality for ALL - including those of us who are Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning!

Check out the Equality Across America website for a listing of ACTIONS you can be part of to stand up in support of

"Equal protection in all matters governed by civil law in all 50 states."

In August 2009, President Barack Obama posthumously awarded Milk the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his contribution to the gay rights movement stating "he fought discrimination with visionary courage and conviction".

And also last year, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger designated May 22 as "Harvey Milk Day", and inducted Milk in the California Hall of Fame.


There's two wonderful films about Harvey Milk. The Times Of Harvey Milk, a documentary that won the Academy Award (for best documentary) back in 1984. And Milk, a 2008 biopic that won two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Actor (Sean Penn as Milk.)

There's also a picture book, The Harvey Milk Story!

(more on the picture book on Monday!)

Happy Harvey Milk Day - and let's each of us stand up for equality for ALL!

I'm gonna let Harvey have the last word, which I think he would have loved:

Governor Schwarzenegger, Harvey Milk Day, And the POWER of a story well-told

Harvey Milk in 1978

Big news this week was that our California Governor signed the law setting aside May 22 as "Harvey Milk Day" - a special day of recognition to honor the trailblazing Gay politician.

Here's more:

While it will not be a state holiday, schools will be encouraged to hold lessons "remembering the life of Harvey Milk, recognising his accomplishments and familiarising pupils with the contributions he made to this state".

What is so fascinating is that last year, Schwarzenegger VETOED this exact same bill.

So, what changed?

The decision by President Barack Obama to award Milk the presidential medal of freedom and an Academy award-winning film about Milk's life, starring Sean Penn, persuaded Schwarzenegger to change his mind, his spokesman, Aaron McLear, said.

"Harvey Milk symbolises the importance of the gay community in California," said McClear. "And the governor wanted to honour that community. A well-known film brought awareness of him."

Mark Leno, a Democratic state senator, who wrote the bill to honour Milk, said he was pleased about the governor's decision. "In light of his veto message on the same bill last year," he said, "he clearly evolved in his thinking."

It isn't that our Governor didn't know about Harvey Milk last year. He just thought Harvey Milk wasn't that important outside of San Francisco. And it wasn't like there were no gay people last year in the state, when he vetoed it.

But now, with the movie "MILK" and everything else that's going on in our society, the stories we tell, and the stories others tell about us, are changing. Now our stories are about parenthood (gay penguins can be good daddies, too). Our stories are about fighting for marriage, a pretty "conservative" goal. Our stories are about fighting for our country without lying about ourselves - about how we're honest, and brave, and loyal. And our stories are about our ANGER at being treated as second class citizens. Our Anger over Prop 8, which took away the rights of any new gay couples to legally marry in California.

Our stories are changing, and that is creating a shift in our culture. A shift in how we perceive ourselves, and in how others perceive us. The new story is that:

It's no longer "cool" to slam the Gays.

We're standing up, marching, and demanding some respect.

And this week, happily, we got some.

We got Harvey Milk Day.

And in another wonderful stroke of his pen, our Governor also signed a law that makes California recognize the legality of Gay marriages from other states and countries!

So, Hurray for us in California! Hurray for our Governor, who got these two laws right. And Hurray for what Harvey Milk continues to teach us: Come Out. Stand Up. Be Empowered!

Listen to Harvey - he says it beautifully:

Namaste,

Lee

ps: The quotes above are from this article here.

pps: Also, check out the amazing Academy Award Winning documentary"The Times Of Harvey Milk," from back in 1984.