S.F. plans for
Harvey Milk sculpture

Twenty-five years after openly gay San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk was first sworn in to office, city officials and Milk's friends have launched a fund-raising drive to pay for a bust of the man, who was assassinated less than a year after he took office, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. "Harvey Milk is a symbol of modern politics and a symbol of what people can do when they decided to take a different, nontraditional course to make a change from within government," said San Francisco sheriff Mike Hennessey. The planned bust of Milk will be placed in city hall. Board president Matt Gonzalez, who is leading the fund-raising effort, said that between $50,000 and $100,000 needs to be raised. Once the money is available, he said, the city's Arts Commission will pick a sculptor to create the piece. "This is an overdue and fitting way to remember the painful loss of a seminal gay leader and ensure his legacy is not forgotten," said supervisor Tom Ammiano, one of seven openly gay or lesbian politicians who were elected to the board of supervisors after Milk. Donations to the fund should be sent to: Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Fund, Office of the Controller, City Hall, Room 300, No. 1, Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, San Francisco, CA 94102.