A stamp dedicated to the memory of
slain politician and gay rights activist Harvey Milk is expected to
be announced this week.
“It is official! The USPS will
confirm this week that my uncle, Harvey Milk, will be commemorated on
a 2014 US postage stamp. Another first!” wrote Stuart Milk in a
post at the Harvey Milk Foundation's Facebook
page. “My deep gratitude to everyone that supported this
effort! More details, including the image, to come via USPS soon!
'Hope will never be silent' and that enduring message of hope will be
on millions of letters represented by Harvey's image.”
Milk was the first openly gay elected
official of a major U.S. City. He was elected to the San Francisco
Board of Supervisors in 1977 on a pledge to back gay and lesbian
rights. The following year, Milk was killed by Dan White, a former
supervisor.
According to the Gay and Lesbian
Victory Fund, a group that supports openly LGBT elected officials,
Milk is the first openly LGBT elected official to be featured on a
U.S. postage stamp.
“Harvey Milk's legacy is alive and
well,” Victory
Fund President Chuck Wolfe said in a blog post. “His historic
run paved the way for a generation of LGBT leaders who can be open
and honest about who they are, and it's encouraging to see the U.S.
Postal Service honoring his legacy of perseverance and pride today.”
(Related: San
Francisco considers renaming airport after Harvey Milk.)