"The first gay people we elect must be strong… They must be above wheeling and dealing. They must be—for the good of all of us—independent, unbought."
- San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk
One of the first openly gay elected officials in America
Harvey Milk was the best of us. He busted down barriers for LGBTQ+ people, and he helped build a movement in solidarity with Black and Latino communities, seniors, and organized labor.
Harvey also saw the importance of boldly standing up for what is right and fighting back against entrenched interests and a culture of corruption.
That's why, for Pride Month, I'm asking for your support for 2 groups:
I believe, through our combined missions, we are carrying on the work of electing independent, unbought leaders like Harvey. For Pride Month, will you split a donation between us?
I know the times these days can feel bleak. Far-right extremists have introduced over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in state legislatures. When the Supreme Court struck down the right to abortion, Clarence Thomas suggested marriage equality should be next.
When it feels like we're only moving backwards, it helps to remember Harvey.
He didn't let electoral losses get him down. He lost his first campaigns for office. And, when the LGBTQ+ rights movement experienced setbacks in the 70s, he insisted there was value in the country being educated about gay people and that hostility would change to conversation. He was right.
In 1978, conservatives in California decided to push an initiative that would have made firing gay teachers mandatory. Harvey publicly debated the initiative's lead sponsor, John Briggs. By the end of the campaign, both Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter came out against the initiative, and it lost by more than 1 million votes.
Harvey believed in hope. If he could do that in 1978, then we sure as heck can do the same in 2024.
In the words of Harvey: "And you and you and you, you have to give people hope."
To a hopeful, resilient Pride,
Katie Porter
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Katie Porter started Truth to Power to support Democrats who reject corporate PAC money and are running to protect the environment, restore the nationwide right to an abortion, and create an economy that works for working people. |
Paid for by Truth to Power PAC
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