CA SR91

Senate Resolution 91 recognizes May 22, 2024, as Harvey Milk Day to commemorate the pioneering contributions of Harvey Milk to LGBTQ+ civil rights.

Harvey Milk was the first openly gay man elected to public office in a major U.S. city, serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977 and sponsoring a successful gay rights ordinance prohibiting employment and housing discrimination.

Milk was assassinated on November 27, 1978, at San Francisco City Hall by fellow Supervisor Dan White, who was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and received a seven-year, eight-month sentence that sparked the "White Night Riots."

Harvey Milk's legacy includes numerous institutions and landmarks named after him, including Harvey Milk High School in New York, a U.S. Postal Service Forever Stamp, the USNS Harvey Milk naval vessel, and Harvey Milk Terminal 1 at San Francisco International Airport—the world's first airport terminal named after an LGBTQ+ leader.

California now has nearly 200 openly 2SLGBTQ+ elected officials as of 2024, with the State Legislature achieving historic 10 percent representation, reflecting Milk's pioneering role as California's first openly gay elected official.