Street near to Mormon HQ could be named after Harvey Milk
A street in Salt Lake City near the Mormon church’s headquarters could be named after gay rights hero Harvey Milk.
LGBT rights group Equality Utah has announced a proposal to rename 900 South as ‘Harvey Milk Boulevard’, at a fundraising event over the weekend.
The rights group are spearheading the campaign along with Salt Lake City mayor Ralph Becker and Councilman Stan Penfold.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which remains militantly opposed to most LGBT rights, has its global headquarters just a few miles away from the proposed road.
Equality Utah Executive Director Troy Williams said in an interview with FOX 13: “I think 10 years from now, 20 years from now Harvey Milk won’t just be an icon for the LGBT community.
“Harvey Milk will be an icon for all Americans and all Utahns. I think in time, all of Utah will be proud to have a street named after him.”
Milk was the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California in 1977, after three unsuccessful attempts to gain office, but only held his position for 11 months before being assassinated by Dan White, a former colleague who had lost his position in city administration.
If approved, Harvey Milk Boulevard will join a list of streets in Salt Lake City to have been named after civil rights activists such as Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Rosa Parks Boulevard.
This comes a year after the US post office unveiled a range of stamps to honour and thank Harvey Milk for his help in ‘liberating gay couples.’
