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Get Milk! I don't mean the white liquid that 'does a body good' and builds strong bones. I'm talking about Harvey Bernard Milk, former member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, District 5. He took office 31 years ago today, after first running unsuccessfully three times, and became the first gay man to be elected to public office in California! As a gay American, I'm ashamed to say I hadn't really heard much about him until I saw the movie "Milk" (2008 - watch movie trailer) today. He was assassinated when I was only 9 years old, so it's not really a surprise that I wasn't really privy to his story. Growing up in the Midwest, it certainly was not something I found documented in my history books. Maybe if I had grown up in San Francisco, things would have been different.

I don't know how closely this movie depicted the real story of Harvey Milk or how accurate Sean Penn was in his portrayal of him, but I cried multiple times and I gawked in disbelief as I watched. I was inspired by Harvey's infectious enthusiasm for taking on the injustice he was seeing in his community. I was amazed at his tenacity to keep going after losing one campaign after another. I was touched by the passion he had for his truth. I was also sickened by the blind hate and bigotry I saw, mostly spewed in the name of God's Law. Harvey once said "The fact is that more people have been slaughtered in the name of religion than for any other single reason. That, THAT my friends, is true perversion." There were so many things he said that struck me and resounded at my core.

We often lose sight of all the people who have put themselves out there, sometimes putting their lives in danger, to fight for the civil rights we have today. Where would our society by without people like Martin Luther King Jr., Susan B. Anthony or Harvey Milk? It wasn't so long ago that our schools were segregated, women could not vote and gays could lose their jobs solely based on their sexual orientation. It wasn't so long ago that Harvey was out there saying "My name is Harvey Milk and I'm here to recruit you!" Where would I be today without people like him? This movie really made me think about that. It made me remember how grateful I am for the freedoms I have. It also reminded me how important it is to stand up and be heard. Proposition 8 recently passed here in California, and I was angry and astounded that such a discriminitory measure could pass in 2008, let alone in the state of California. But when I look at how far we have come, I have hope...

"Hope will never be silent!" - Harvey Milk