Harvey Milk: The Public Face of Gay Rights Politics

In this concise biography, Eric H. Walther introduces students to the life of San Francisco City Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in California. Walther traces the story of Milk’s life from his upbringing in New York and early incarnation as a Barry Goldwater Republican through his transformative experiences in the 1960s counterculture and his entrance into politics, as well as examining his legacy in the decades that followed his assassination. The life of Milk, an iconic figure and one of the best-known LGBTQ figures in the United States, sheds light on the history of the gay rights movement and the changing political landscape of the United States in the late 20th century.