This documentary examines the political life of the self-proclaimed "Mayor Of Castro Street," N.Y. stockbroker turned San Francisco activist Harvey Milk, the first openly gay politician elected to public office in California. Milk was elected to a City Supervisor position in the '70s, when a successful gay politician was an anomaly, but Milk made the most of his brief time in power. When Dan White killed Milk and Mayor George Moscone, the loss experienced by Milk's supporters was profound. White robbed the gay-rights movement of a charismatic leader and eloquent voice, but he accidentally gave it something a smart political operative like Milk would surely have appreciated the power and value of: a bona fide martyr.