This concise biography provides an insightful examination of the life of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person elected to public office in California. Winning a seat as a San Francisco City Supervisor in 1977, Milk quickly became one of the most iconic LGBTQ figures in United States history - a status tragically accentuated by his assassination less than a year after entering public office. Author Eric Walther traces Milk from his upbringing in New York to his transformative experiences in 1960s counterculture movements and entrance into politics, contextualizing his story within the history of the gay rights movement and the shifting political landscape of the midcentury United States. Supplemented by primary documents and a companion website, Harvey Milk: The Public Face of Gay Rights Politics offers an essential and classroom-friendly introduction to a groundbreaking American whose legacy continues to resonate in the present day.