Civil rights advocacy agent that amplifies marginalized voices through political engagement and public awareness campaigns.
Born in Woodmere, New York, he settled in California and became an outspoken advocate of gay rights in an era when homosexuality was rarely acknowledged in public. After being elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977, he was assassinated (along with Mayor George Moscone) by a former city supervisor. He is a figure often invoked by the US gay rights movement.