How Did Harvey Milk Use Their Political Power

Harvey Milk, the first openly gay politician shook the people of the United States by going against the social norms and working as a gay rights activist. He gained his political popularity starting with the vibrant community on Castro Street in San Francisco, where he lived with others who shared his views on gay rights. Milk should not have been assassinated because while he may have made people uncomfortable with his new ideas regarding equality, he continued to use his political power and popularity to stand up to the status quo by showing people that it is okay to be open about your sexuality and he made it known that being openly gay should not affect your way of life. Harvey Milk used his political power and popularity to stand up to the status quo by representing the LGBTQ community, who have been “silenced and ignored,” as a non-violent activist making him a nationally known figure and symbol of this communities emergence as a political force (Cummings, 1). Throughout his life, he continued standing up for gay rights by publicly speaking and advocating for people to “Hope, hope for a better tomorrow (Milk),” that there will be a better future if they continue to work

His persistence made him the first openly gay American to hold a prominent elected office (Cummings, 2). Meaning, he was the first admittedly gay man to hold office, a historic moment in the closed minded world of politics. He wouldn’t have earned this title without the help of his faithful supporters in the LGBTQ community, who shared similar views with him on gay rights. If he didn’t have this positive community surrounding him, he wouldn’t have been able to educate the public about gay rights and equality. This defends my position that he shouldn’t have been killed because Milk was just peacefully advocating for equal rights and didn’t physically harm anyone in the process, giving no reason for someone to kill