Harvey Milk Forever stamp to be dedicated Thursday

Washington — The official first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony for the Harvey Milk Forever Stamp will take place at the White House, on Thursday, May 22. Milk is the first openly gay man to be featured on postal stamp. May 22 is Harvey Milk Day in California.

Harvey Milk was a visionary leader who became one of the first openly gay elected officials in the U.S. when he won a seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. Milk’s achievements gave hope and confidence to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in the United States and elsewhere at a time when the community was encountering widespread hostility and discrimination. Milk believed that government should represent all citizens, ensuring equality and providing needed services.

His remarkable career was tragically cut short nearly a year after he took office, when he and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone were assassinated.

In 2009, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.

Speakers at the White House ceremony will be: Ambassador Samantha Power, U.S.; Permanent Representative to the United Nations; Representative Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic Leader; Senator Tammy Baldwin; Representative John Lewis; Evan Low, City Councilmember, Campbell, CA; Ronald A. Stroman, Deputy Postmaster General; Stuart Milk, Founder and President, Harvey Milk Foundation; Anne Kronenberg, Co-Founder, Harvey Milk Foundation; Chuck Wolfe, President and CEO, Gay & Lesbian Victory Institute; Mary Lambert, Singer-Songwriter. 

In addition to the White House ceremony, a public dedication ceremony will take place in San Francisco May 28.

The Gayly – May 21, 2014 @ 12pm