Subscribe to this blog's feedTomorrow marks the 30th anniversary of the assassinations of Harvey Milk, a San Francisco supervisor, and George Moscone, the San Francisco mayor. Both men were killed by Dan White, also a San Francisco supervisor. Milk was the first openly gay man elected to public office in the United States.
Today marks the release nationwide of Milk, a Hollywood movie commemorating his life. The movie stars Sean Penn as Milk and was directed by Gus Van Sant. Emile Hirsch plays Cleve Jones, who was a consultant for the movie having worked for Milk as a student intern.
Much has improved societally for LGBTs since 1978, but progress for LGBT civil rights remains slow (although I would argue that it's slow and steady). I believe that we're currently in the middle of a new groundswell of LGBT activism, which I hope will result in major legislative victories in the next few years.
I saw a preview of Milk last night and I left the theater recommitted to doing what I can to help us advance our civil rights. I hope that this movie provides LGBTs everywhere with the same inspiration.
"I know that you can't live on hope alone, but without it, life is not worth living ... you have got to give them hope." - Harvey Milk
Watch the movie trailer:
Hi Oriol,
I am the co-creator of a virtual island in Second Life dedicated to collecting and sharing the experiences of those dealing with HIV/AIDS.
The island is funded by a National Library of Medicine grant written and administered by The Alliance Library System. It also has the support of such prestigious organizations as the CDC, AIDS.gov, CFAR, NIDA, and IBM.
We will celebrate the opening of this island (entitled Karuna, which means to ease suffering) on World AIDS Day (December 1, 2008) in Second Life. You can read more about the project and myself, and see pictures of the island and the other organizers here: http://www.karunasl.info/Information/ and see pictures of the island as it was being built here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/verdeo/sets/72157608590656238/
I have been reading your blog and wondered if you would like to contribute a story to the Story Wall on Karuna.
If you would like to come into Second Life, see Karuna and share World AIDS Day with us, we would be delighted to have you. An account in Second Life is free and I folks lined up to help you get in and show you how it all works.
I look forward to hearing from you.
All the Best,
Jenaia Morane
Writer, Editor, Educator
World AIDS Day Organizer for Second Life