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Informationen zum Autor Corrine Grinapol; Illustrated by Gregory Copeland Klappentext Learn about one of the most influential leaders in the fight for gay rights. Although he started out as a teacher without aspirations to be an activist or politician, Harvey Milk found himself captivated by the history-making movements of the 1960s. He would eventually make history of his own by becoming the first openly gay elected politician in California. While in office, Harvey Milk advocated for equal rights for the gay community. Even though his life and career were cut short, Harvey is still seen by many as one of the most famous and most significantly open LGBT officials ever elected in the United States. His life and legacy continue to inspire and unite the community.Who Was Harvey Milk? During the final years of the Great Depression, when Harvey Milk was about eight or nine, he loved going to the movies. On many Saturdays, he would spend his allowance on tickets to the local movie theater. All across the country, there were special Saturday-afternoon shows with movies just for kids. But the movies weren’t the reason Harvey liked going. Raffles were held during the daytime movies, making it possible for kids to win prizes if the number on their ticket was chosen. Harvey went to the movies always hoping that his ticket would win him a prize. But it wasn’t really the prize that he wanted. The prizes—things like watches and toy guns—were handed out onstage. The winners would come up to the stage to pick up whatever prize they had won. Although many winners probably did that quickly and quietly, Harvey did not. When he’d win, Harvey would make a show out of it, taking low, dramatic bows and getting the packed crowd of kids in the theater to cheer him on. That is what Harvey looked forward to most: the cheers and the attention he received when he was on the stage. After Harvey grew up, he still loved to perform in front of people. He wanted them to pay attention to what he had to say. But grown-up Harvey wasn’t an actor. Instead, he ran for public office, using his talent and skills to inspire others, to fight for the rights of all people, and to try to change his community for the better. This is his story. Chapter 1: The Milks Come to Woodmere Harvey Bernard Milk was born on May 22, 1930, in Woodmere, New York, a town on Long Island about an hour from New York City. The first person in Harvey Milk’s family to come to Woodmere was his grandfather, Mausche Milch. Mausche was born in what is now Lithuania, a country in northern Europe. He had a big family, and it was hard to find work that could support his wife and five children. So he left on his own to find work in the United States. Mausche was the only Jewish person in Woodmere, and he changed his name to Morris Milk to fit in more. He worked as a door-to-door salesman, selling things like clothes and fabric, called dry goods. He saved his money and opened his own store, Milk’s Dry Goods. The store did well, and after almost six years alone, it was time for the rest of Morris’s family to come to America. His children changed their names in America, too. The youngest child, Hieke, became known as William. William was Harvey’s father. William, who called himself Bill, married Minerva “Minnie” Karns in 1925, when he was twenty-eight. Minnie’s family was also Jewish and originally from Lithuania, too. Minnie had grown up in Brooklyn, New York. She was independent and funny, and she believed that women could do many of the same things men could. Bill and Minnie had two children, Robert Milk, born in 1926, and Harvey, born four years later. By the time Robert and Harvey were born, Milk’s Dry Goods had grown into Milk’s Department Store. Harvey’s grandfather became an important man in the community, which by then included a lot more Jewis...
