Harvey Milk: The History, the Impact, and the Advocacy
History of the Harvey Milk Stamp
Before the campaign for the USNS Harvey Milk, there was a similar campaign for the Harvey Milk stamp. In 2009, prominent LGBT activist Nicole Murray-Ramirez, chair of the International Imperial Court System, launched a national letter-writing campaign with the help of Stuart Milk and the Harvey Milk Foundation to the U.S. Postal Service to issue a stamp honoring Harvey Milk.
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Countless civic leaders joined the cause, and the campaign gathered thousands of endorsements and letters nationwide. In 2013, the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee approved the proposal after years of advocacy. On Harvey Milk's birthday, May 22, 2014, the Harvey Milk Forever Stamp was officially unveiled at the White House and the San Francisco City Hall.
History of the USNS Harvey Milk
In 2012, Nicole Murray-Ramirez, the prominent national LGBT activist spearheaded a national letter-writing campaign urging the Navy to name a ship for Harvey Milk. Congressman Bob Filner sent formal letters to Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, while the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a resolution endorsing the proposal.
USNS Harvey Milk during its christening ceremony in San Diego. Wikimedia Commons
The campaign was coordinated through the International Imperial Court System, which mobilized supports across the country to write to the Navy and Defense Department. Ultimately, after years of advocacy led by Nicole Murray-Ramirez and fellow activists, Secretary Mabus announced in 2016 that they would be designating T-AO 206 as the USNS Harvey Milk.
USNS Harvey Milk T-AO 206. Wikimedia Commons.
Life of Harvey Milk
Harvey Bernard Milk (May 22, 1930 – November 27, 1978) was born in the New York City suburb of Woodmere, to William Milk and Minerva Karns. Milk graduated from Bay Shore High School in Bay Shores, New York in 1947 and attended New York State College for Teachers in Albany, New York, (now the State University of New York at Albany) from 1947 to 1951, majoring in mathematics.
Harvey Milk and his older brother, Robert Milk. Wikimedia Commons
Harvey Milk in Dress Navy 1954. Wikimedia Commons
After graduation, Milk joined the United States Navy during the Korean War. He served aboard the submarine rescue ship USS Kittiwake (ASR-13) as a diving officer. Milk later transferred to Naval Station, San Diego to serve as a diving instructor. In 1955, he resigned from the Navy at the rank of Lieutenant (junior grade) forced to accept an "other than honorable" discharge and leave the service rather than be court-martialed because of his homosexuality.
Milk moved to San Francisco in 1972, where he eventually became involved in politics. After several failed candidacies for roles in local office, Mayor George Moscone appointed Milk to the city’s Board of Permit Appeals, making him the first openly gay city commissioner in the United States, according to the Milk Foundation.
Harvey Milk became one of the nation's first openly gay elected officials when he was elected to a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977.
Harvey Milk in 1978 at Mayor Moscone's desk. Wikimedia Commons
Harvey Milk in Left Corner, San Francisco Board of Supervisors 1978. Wikimedia Commons.
A year after Milk won election to the city's board of supervisors, he and Moscone were assassinated by a disgruntled former city supervisor.
Milk was posthumously recognized for his work advocating for the LGBTQ+ community. A statue of Milk sits in San Francisco City Hall's rotunda, and a terminal in the city's airport is also named after him. In 2009, President Barack Obama awarded him the Medal of Freedom.