Stuart Milk, co-founder and president of the Harvey Milk Foundation and nephew of the gay rights icon Harvey Milk, was presented with the Gold Medal for Outstanding Contribution to Public Discourse by The College Historical Society (The Hist) in Trinity College Dublin Friday, March 21.
Stuart was honored by The Hist for his inspiring decade of work to facilitate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) rights at the global level. Stuart delivered an address on the future of the LGBT community. Founded in 1770 by Edmund Burke, The Hist provides a debating forum that attracts the world’s most prestigious speakers. Stuart joins the alumni ranks of notable past speakers, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu; Noam Chomsky; Sir Winston Churchill; U.S. Senator Edward “Ted” Kennedy; and poet and playwright William Butler Yeats.
“Stuart Milk has the elegance, charm and fire of his late uncle and made a deep impression on me and everybody he met here,” said Sen. David Norris, Senior Member of the Irish Senate (Seanad). “It is wonderful that Harvey’s legacy of fighting for the human rights has led Stuart and the Harvey Milk Foundation across the globe and here to us and our community in Ireland.”
The trip continued with visits to local elementary schools to spark a dialogue on LGBT history and civil rights. Stuart also led a roundtable discussion with national LGBT leaders on human rights and equality at the U.S. Embassy in Dublin. Stuart then addressed the Embassy’s Youth Council on the increased importance and need for youth to carry on the work to achieve equality.
