Harvey Milk

I saw the movie with my partner at the River Oaks Landmark Cinema at a public group-viewing organized by the Houston Young Stonewall Democrats. Sue Lovell, Houston City Council Member, was there, as promised in the invitation e-mailed by Kris Banks.

I would like to think Harvey Milk was there, also. Even if it would only be the spirit of Harvey; or the idea.

I had champaign with my partner in the cafe upstairs before watching the movie. We wore leather. The grand theatre is an historic landmark, and looks it. We went downstairs and watched history unfold, literally. The movie takes place in a setting that preserves some of the grandeur of history, the city of San Francisco.

San Francisco is a beautiful city for many reasons, not least of which is the tradition of tolerance and respect for people who are different; specifically the Gay, Lesbian, Bi, and Trans community. As "Milk" documents, a tradition doesn't just spring forth. It is built.

At least, that's what I observed in the movie.

Harvey was not exactly a young idealist when he first decided to run for office. But there was an ideal, just then same. He had to run several times and kept losing until that final election.

Although it wasn't documented in the movie, I am sure his campaigning skills improved along the way. You can't persist without learning a few lessons. Something comes with practice.

Harvey hired a campaign manager who recognized the value of endorsements. There was a redistricting. The voices of the Haight and Castro district voters where heard.

Harvey Milk catapulted himself to power with a lot of help from a lot of friends. There was a shared vision brought to actuality after a lot of effort and setbacks. There was the difference he made.

Relationships were strained to the point of breaking, before and after the elections. There was finality; the kind brought about by death, and the kind brought about by distance. Murder, suicide, assassinations; these can be components of the underbelly of the quest for power, especially when combined with profound human failings. But as our nation's founders knew all too well, the consequences of powerlessness are always tragic.

"Milk" is a film to see for anyone who strives to change society, even just a little. It is an especially good movie for people who passively wait for society to improve on its own, like waiting for dinner to arrange itself. I want to see that, finally.

Perhaps it will inspire an end to that pesky passivity. If you think your vote doesn't matter, see this movie.

"Milk" may, indeed, make progress towards converting those who do not believe in democracy. But, it does so much for those who already do I hardly think it matters. Traditions endure.

Today we can watch a movie like "Milk" and take for granted that the level of police brutality that took place in the 70s will not recur. Whether it is in San Francisco or Houston, our happy state of affairs did not just happen. To take a line from another great movie: "Great performances don't just happen." Indeed, you know it. It all takes planning. "Everything fell into place." as Harvey says at one point in "Milk." Do things just arrange themselves, reader?

Not to mention all the hard work. There is a reason Houston isn't a swamp anymore. Or, it won't necessarily be one forever. It all depends on your perspective, or, the idea of it; if I can be an idealist.

Harvey Milk