Uncle Donald's Castro Street
-Harvey Milk-
30 YEARS LATER
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Harvey Milk died 30 years ago on November 27, 1978.
His memory is still very much alive in San Francisco.
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There are many public institutions named after Harvey,Milk including a school and a recreational center. The plaza in front of the Muni Metro station at Market and Castro is known as Harvey Milk Plaza. On November 7, 1997, the 20th anniversary of Milk's election victory, Willie Brown, the Mayor of San Francisco, presided at a ceremony marking the occasion. In Milk's honor, the Mayor raised a 20-foot by 30-foot Rainbow Flag on a 70-foot tall flag pole in Harvey Milk Plaza. The flag flies 24 hours a day except during bad weather or high winds when it is replaced by a smaller one. It can be seen from the foot of Market Street and from Twin Peaks. Early in the year 2000 the Rainbow Flag reclaimed its original full set of 8 stripes - PINK RED ORANGE YELLOW GREEN TURQUOISE BLUE and PURPLE, designed by Gilbert Baker in 1978. For a year or so, the 8-stripe flag flew over Harvey Milk Plaza but eventually reverted to the 6-stripe version.
This picture was taken at the 1998 Castro Street Fair.
Through the efforts of Wendy Nelder, head of the Mayor's Neighborhood Beautification Fund, the City of San Francisco provided funds for a mural to be painted on the front of the building at 575 Castro Street which housed "CASTRO CAMERA" and the upstairs residence of Harvey Milk and his lover Scott Smith. The picture, painted by Josef Norris, shows a smiling Harvey looking down at his beloved Castro Street from a second floor window. The mural was completed in June of 1998.
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There is a bronze plaque embedded in the sidewalk in front of the building. It marks the site as the location of Harvey Milk's home and camera shop. Early in the year 2000, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved a resolution to assign "Historic Building" status to 575 Castro Street.
"You gotta give 'em hope!"
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HARVEY MILK PHOTOGRAPHIC TRIBUTE
On Sunday, May 21, 2006, Harvey's birthday, a permanent photographic tribute was unveiled at Harvey Milk Plaza at Market and Castro Streets. The exhibit consists of 11 photographs by 7 photographers. They are reproduced in porcelain enamel on 3 panels. Of those 7 photographers, 4 have picture galleries on this website. They are:
Dan Nicoletta, and
Jerry Pritikin, and
Efren Ramirez, and me.
DAN NICOLETTA went to work at Castro Camera in 1975. He was 19 years old. He developed a close relationship with Milk and his partner Scott Smith. Dan is probably the best resource on Harvey Milk alive today and has dedicated himself to preserving Milk's legacy. Supervisor Bevan Dufty and Senator Carole Migden inaugurated this project, but it was Nicoletta who organized, contacted, planned, and guided the plan to its completion. Check out the DAN NICOLETTA GALLERY on this website.
STUART MILK is the son of Harvey's brother Robert. He has always been an activist and has taken on the role of spokesperson for the Milk family. Although he lives in Florida, he is becoming well known in San Francisco since he often appears at functions honoring his uncle. One need only look at his face to know that Stuart surely is closely related to Harvey Milk.
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Principal Speakers
LEFT STUART MILK
nephew of Harvey Milk
RIGHT
DAN NICOLETTA
project organizer
and photographer
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HARVEY MILK BUST IN CITY HALL
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On May 22, 2008, Harvey's 78th birthday, a bust was installed in City Hall during a gala celebration in his honor. This was the culmination of a 3 year drive by the "Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Committee" to raise prize money to attract artists to submit their bust plans in a contest. This project was happened because of the dreams and efforts of photographer and Milk confidant Dan Nicoletta. It was a success because of the generous contributions of members of the community.
A lavish, well attended party was held in City Hall. Ceremonies were conducted in the ornate rotunda. Food and beverages were served in the adjoining rooms.
The bust of Harvey Milk now stands proudly at the top of the main staircase outside the Supervisors' meeting room. This is also the spot where civil wedding ceremonies are performed.
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A STREETCAR NAMED MILK
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San Francisco Muni has a fleet of historical streetcars that run from the Ferry Building downtown, along Market Street to Castro Street. They also run along the Embarcardero to Fishermens' Wharf.
Harvey Milk was an advocate of public transportation and strongly supported San Francisco's Muni during his term in office. In fact, he rode the bus to and from work every day.
On October 28, 2008, the day of the World Premiere of the movie "MILK" one of the Historical Streetcars (Car #1051) was dedicated to Harvey Milk as a "Museum on Wheels"
The dedication ceremony was held at Castro and Market Streets and was attended by Muni Officials, local politicians, and friends of Harvey Milk including his nephew Stuart Milk, Dan Nicoletta, Cleve Jones (creator of the Names Project - the AIDS Memorial Quilt), Anne Kronenberg, Allan Baird (retired Teamsters President who got the Teamsters to support Milk in return for a boycott of Coors beer), and of course, Uncle Donald. Also present were Gus Van Sant, director of "MILK" and Lance Black, the screenwriter.
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