Tonight I watched Milk, it's bad to say but until I watched the film I had never heard of Harvey Milk.
Harvey Milk was an American politician who became the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, when he won a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. After about the age of 40 he started to participate in politics and gay activism.
Milk moved to San Francisco in 1972 during a migration of gay men to the Castro District. He took advantage of the growing political power of the neighbourhood to promote his interests.
He ran for office three times unsuccessfully, however his campaigns gained him increasing popularity, and he won a seat as a city supervisor in 1977. Milk only served 11 months in office but was responsible for passing a gay rights ordinance for the city. On the 27th of November 1978 Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by Dan White. Dan White was another city supervisor who had resigned but wished to return to his previous position.
Mayor Moscone initially agreed to allow Dan White to return to his former position, however after more consideration and intervention from other supervisors including Milk the mayor decided to appoint someone else to the district. Half an hour before the mayor was due to be in a press conference to announce Dan White's replacement White entered city hall through a basement window and headed to the mayor's office. Witnesses heard shouting between White and mayor Moscone then they heard gun shots.
White then headed to his former office, on the way he asked Milk to step in, Milk was then shot 5 times including twice in the head at close range.
Dianne Feinstein heard the shots and called the police, after she identified both bodies she announced to the press what had happened.
