Can We Stop Hyping Up Harvey Milk?

The strongest LGBTQ supporters have heard of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay American politician elected to public office in California. Many articles are honoring his death, and a candlelight vigil was held for Milk this week, marking the 45th anniversary of his assassination.

Geriatric House Speaker Nancy Pelosi paid tribute to the late activist. "45 years ago, in a moment of horror and heartbreak, San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk were assassinated," her statement read. "We mourn these two beacons of hope whose transformational legacies continue to inspire our quest for LGBTQ+ equality and freedom from gun violence."

On November 27, 1978, the mayor of San Francisco, George Moscone, and Milk were shot and killed inside City Hall by Dan White, a disgruntled former city supervisor who voted against Milk's bill banning discrimination based on sexual orientation in private employment, the federal government, and the military.

Harvey Milk Allegedly Groomed Boys

The LGBTQ community can appreciate Milk's bill all they want, but they don't have to pretend that Milk is innocent. In his biography, The Mayor of Castro Street: The Life and Times of Harvey Milk, author Randy Shilts wrote about Milk's inappropriate relationships with minors. One of them was a 16-year-old runaway named Jack McKinley who was "looking for some kind of father figure."

McKinley moved into Milk's Upper West Side apartment within a few weeks of meeting and settled into a "middle-class domestic marriage." Shilts wrote, "At 33, Milk was launching a new life, though he could hardly have imagined the unlikely direction toward which his new lover [McKinley] would pull him."

Elsewhere in the book, Shilts recalls the time when 19-year-old Joe Campbell met an older man who "virtually ordered Joe to have sex with him, and the quick decision that Joe Campbell was the lover he was looking for." That older man was, you guessed it, Harvey Milk.

The author described Milk's affinity toward "young waifs" that he "had always found so appealing," even when he was in his mid-forties. Later, he met 25-year-old Jack Lira. "Harvey had a penchant for young waifs with substance abuse problems," Shilts said. Lira came from a poor Mexican-American family and was disowned by his father when he learned about his homosexuality. Milk insisted that "he was just trying to help out a troubled kid," Shilts wrote, "Besides, he'd [Milk] add with a wink, Jack was dynamite sex." Lira committed suicide from Milk's back porch in 1978.

Schools Glorify Harvey Milk

In May of this year, the Temecula Valley Unified School District (TVUSD) Board of Education in California voted against adopting a curriculum recommended by the State Board of Education for elementary school students due to a textbook commemorating Milk's life and achievements. Danny Gonzales, a TVUSD board member, objected. "The inclusion of sexually based topics and the glorification of a known pedophile who happened to be an advocate for gay rights to 10-year-olds morally reprehensible and inappropriate," he said.

Dr. Joseph Komrosky added during a board meeting, "My question is, why even mention a pedophile? Why even mention that? What has that got to do with our curriculum in schools? That's a form of activism."

Concerned parents and board members have no say in the matter. California Gov. Gavin Newsom fined the school board for $1.5 million due to its decision to reject the textbook mentioning Milk. The fine – which could have gone to underfunded California public schools in impoverished areas – will cover the cost of shipping the materials to the district.

Evie deserves to be heard. Support our cause and help women reclaim their femininity by subscribing today.