The Hope of Harvey Milk Day

Today would have marked Harvey Milk's 80th birthday, had the late San Francisco City Supervisor and openly gay politician not had his life cut short in a tragic assassination in 1978. Milk's story has taken on new meaning in recent years, first with an Oscar-winning movie, and then with the proclamation of Harvey Milk Day, a day recognized officially by the state of California (and celebrated around the country) as a chance to reflect upon the legacy and activism of Milk.

Perhaps the question many people are asking today, on this very first Harvey Milk Day, is WWHD: "What Would Harvey Do?", given the battles we're still fighting today for LGBT rights. Battles like trying to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," or passing a federal Employment Nondiscrimination Act, or fighting for marriage equality across the country, or making sure that HIV/AIDS is tackled in a responsible and effective way by local, state and federal governments. That Milk's life was cut short before he could weigh in on any of these national issues is tragic. But the joy of today is perhaps best spelled out by Harvey's famous quote: "If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door."

Today is a day partly about honoring the life of Milk. But it's also a day to make sure that in cities across the country — from Boston to San Francisco to Chicago to Tampa to Mobile to Los Angeles to Gainesville to Jackson to St. Louis and many, many more — tens of thousands of more Harvey Milks are created. Busting open every closet door is part of the goal, but getting folks to then take action, in the same way that Harvey Milk was inspired to (and inspired others to do), is exactly the reason that Harvey Milk Day was created. Therein lies the beautiful hope about today.

Some people have tried to dismiss today as a wasted effort by activists and the state of California to get people to reflect on a man who didn't really make a difference. People like Ken Mettler, who managed to convince a school district in California to ignore Harvey Milk Day and avoid teaching their students about the impact of Milk's legacy. Think these folks are threatened much by the power of people to not only remember Milk's work, but to then use his legacy as a means to organize around? Sure, a school district might choose to cover their eyes on Harvey Milk Day. But they won't be able to organize the sheer volume of people working today for LGBT rights.

Equality California is canvassing today, going door-to-door to reach people with a message of equal rights. In other places (like Phoenix), folks are coming together to remember Milk by calling for an end to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." In New York, activists are coming together to remember Milk, but to also hear speakers talk about the Employment Nondiscrimination Act, HIV/AIDS, the scourge of homelessness among LGBT youth, the immigration injustices faced by LGBT people, transgender equality, marriage equality and more.

Yes, Harvey Milk may not have lived long enough in order to weigh in on many of these issues. But his life is absolutely inspiring others to take action on these critical issues. And if Harvey Milk were still alive today to celebrate his 80th birthday, you can almost bet that his birthday wish would be just that — that people would be inspired to act, to get in the streets, to stir up trouble, and to demand the change that doesn't come from waiting patiently for Blue Dog Democrats to finally come around on our issues, but from picking up that megaphone and pestering our leaders until they march with us, or get voted out of office.

So Happy Harvey Milk Day, folks. If you're looking for events going on in your area, check out Equality Across America, as well as this pretty detailed list at Gayapolis. And for inspiration, maybe it's worth reviewing this video yet again. Though nobody likes homework, it might be worth requiring everyone to watch this at least once a month to remember why we fight.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons