Harvey Milk’s Impact on LGBTQ Community All over the world, including in the United States, people face discrimination, inequality, and violence based on who they are. In the short story “A Letter to Harvey Milk” by Lesléa Newman, readers encounter characters that advocate for the rights of minorities, particularly Harvey Milk. Though Harvey Milk didn’t participate in dialogue throughout the short story, he had an immense impact on not only the two main characters Harry and Barbara, but the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) community as well. In the mid-twentieth century, homosexuals were legally and socially discriminated against in the United States. In 1969, a police raid on a gay bar in New York City occurred. Instead