1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:01,920 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:06,360 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Welcome to This Day in History Class, where 3 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:12,440 Speaker 1: History waits for no One. Today is May one, nineteen 4 00:00:23,880 --> 00:00:28,200 Speaker 1: The day was May one, nineteen seventy nine. In the 5 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:31,960 Speaker 1: aftermath of the sentencing of Dan White, who assassinated San 6 00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 1: Francisco Mayor George Muscone and city supervisor Harvey Milk, riots 7 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:40,839 Speaker 1: erupted in the city. Milk was a gay rights activist. 8 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:44,600 Speaker 1: Musconi had lobbied against White's reappointment as a member of 9 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:47,199 Speaker 1: the Board of Supervisors, and he had a lot of 10 00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:51,560 Speaker 1: support in the gay community. White was convicted of voluntary 11 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 1: manslaughter rather than first degree murder. After the verdict was released, 12 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:59,800 Speaker 1: on protesters and police went head to hit in a 13 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:05,720 Speaker 1: night of chaos. Dan White, a former police officer and firefighter, 14 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:09,640 Speaker 1: was a member of the Board of Supervisors alongside Harvey Milk. 15 00:01:10,440 --> 00:01:14,080 Speaker 1: While Milk was a supervisor, he advocated for gay rights 16 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:18,199 Speaker 1: and small business owners. Milk and White were on good 17 00:01:18,319 --> 00:01:23,160 Speaker 1: terms at first personally and politically, but their relationship went 18 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: downhill when Milk voted for a zoning bill that White opposed, 19 00:01:27,400 --> 00:01:31,640 Speaker 1: after Milk implied that he was on white side. After that, 20 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:34,520 Speaker 1: White was the only person to vote against a city 21 00:01:34,640 --> 00:01:39,640 Speaker 1: ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation that Milk pushed through. 22 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 1: He began pushing back against Milk's efforts. White began rarely 23 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:47,920 Speaker 1: showing up to his office at City Hall, and his 24 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:50,600 Speaker 1: family was finding it hard to make ends meat and 25 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:54,840 Speaker 1: had opened a new snack food business. At the same time, 26 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: Milk was enjoying a lot of success in legislation he 27 00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 1: was sponsoring and getting positive press attention. In November night, 28 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:06,680 Speaker 1: White resigned from the board, saying he was not making 29 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:09,880 Speaker 1: enough money as a supervisor to support his family, but 30 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:13,359 Speaker 1: when White decided to come back days later, Masconi did 31 00:02:13,400 --> 00:02:18,760 Speaker 1: not reappoint him, with Milk lobbying against White's reappointment. On 32 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:23,880 Speaker 1: November eight, White went into City Hall with a thirty 33 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:28,400 Speaker 1: eight revolver to avoid a weapon search. He entered the 34 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:32,280 Speaker 1: building through a side door. Masconi's assistant let White into 35 00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:37,800 Speaker 1: Mausconi's office, where White shot the mayor four times. White 36 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:40,280 Speaker 1: then walked down the hall and asked Milk if they 37 00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: could talk, and White shot him five times. Diane Feinstein, 38 00:02:46,240 --> 00:02:49,640 Speaker 1: who was then president of the Board of Supervisors, announced 39 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:53,160 Speaker 1: the deaths on the steps of City Hall. White was 40 00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:57,560 Speaker 1: apprehended not long after the murders. Months later, White went 41 00:02:57,600 --> 00:03:01,840 Speaker 1: to child During the child White's attorney mounted what became 42 00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:05,760 Speaker 1: known as a twinkie defense, arguing that White had diminished 43 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:08,919 Speaker 1: capacity due to depression and the loss of his job, 44 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:12,240 Speaker 1: as evidenced by the excessive amounts of junk food he 45 00:03:12,280 --> 00:03:14,280 Speaker 1: was eating in the weeks leading up to the crime. 46 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:19,840 Speaker 1: The jury, made up mostly of conservatives, was sympathetic to White. 47 00:03:20,320 --> 00:03:25,240 Speaker 1: One nine nine. He was found guilty of the voluntary 48 00:03:25,280 --> 00:03:29,160 Speaker 1: manslaughter of Masconi and Milk. He was sentenced to seven 49 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:31,800 Speaker 1: years and eight months in prison, with the chance to 50 00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:36,120 Speaker 1: be released earlier with good behavior. When the verdict was announced, 51 00:03:36,280 --> 00:03:40,080 Speaker 1: the gay community, which was large in San Francisco, marched 52 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:43,760 Speaker 1: in protest, but a peaceful march to city Hall turned 53 00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:47,520 Speaker 1: violent as the crowd grew larger. Many people believed the 54 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 1: police were instrumental and White light sentencing. Officers beat protesters 55 00:03:52,760 --> 00:03:56,800 Speaker 1: with night sticks. Protesters set police cars on fire and 56 00:03:56,840 --> 00:04:00,640 Speaker 1: destroyed parts of city Hall. After about three hours of rioting, 57 00:04:01,040 --> 00:04:05,280 Speaker 1: officers quailed the commotion with tear gas. About fifty officers 58 00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:08,880 Speaker 1: and a hundred and twenty four protesters were injured. About 59 00:04:08,920 --> 00:04:13,200 Speaker 1: two dozen people were arrested. Police. Harassment of gay people 60 00:04:13,240 --> 00:04:16,640 Speaker 1: in San Francisco and in tolerance of gay people in 61 00:04:16,680 --> 00:04:20,000 Speaker 1: the police force were already a part of the city's culture, 62 00:04:20,760 --> 00:04:23,919 Speaker 1: but tensions between police and the gay community grew after 63 00:04:23,960 --> 00:04:28,320 Speaker 1: the trial and riots. The day after the riots, city 64 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:32,800 Speaker 1: Supervisor Harry Britt, who had replaced Milk, said the following 65 00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:38,280 Speaker 1: Harvey Milks people do not have anything to apologize for now. 66 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:40,720 Speaker 1: The society is going to have to deal with us, 67 00:04:41,120 --> 00:04:44,400 Speaker 1: not as nice little fairies who have hair dressing salons, 68 00:04:44,440 --> 00:04:47,760 Speaker 1: but as people capable of violence. We're not going to 69 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:52,240 Speaker 1: put up with damn whites anymore. May would have been 70 00:04:52,320 --> 00:04:56,120 Speaker 1: milks forty nine birthday, a rally plan for that night 71 00:04:56,240 --> 00:05:00,960 Speaker 1: turned into a celebration of milks life. I'm Eave, Jeffcote, 72 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:03,680 Speaker 1: and hopefully you know a little more about history today 73 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,560 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. Feel free to leave a very 74 00:05:07,640 --> 00:05:12,400 Speaker 1: kind comment on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. At t D 75 00:05:12,440 --> 00:05:16,480 Speaker 1: I h C podcast, thanks for joining me on this 76 00:05:16,560 --> 00:05:19,920 Speaker 1: trip through time. See you here in the exact same 77 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 1: spot tomorrow. For more podcasts for my Heart Radio, visit 78 00:05:29,400 --> 00:05:31,920 Speaker 1: the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 79 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:33,080 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.