11. Harvey Milk became the first openly gay elected official in California.
He served almost 11 months as city supervisor, passing several gay rights laws. In 1978, Milk and the city’s mayor were both assassinated by Dan White, a disgruntled San Francisco supervisor. Milk is revered and remembered in San Francisco, and the 2008 film based on his life won two Academy Awards. In 2013 he was immortalized on a U.S. postage stamp.
12. In 1980, the Democratic Party became the first major political party in the U.S. to endorse gay rights.
This was a major turning point in LGBT history.
