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Harvey Milk ■ You’ve Got to Have Hope 123

It’s one of those few buildings that contribute knows how long to establish a center to which
in a very unique way to the hopes and aspira- young Gay people can go when they arrive
© Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. For review purposes only. Do not distribute.
tions of a particular group of people. It’s not as here from the rest of an oppressive America. A IDEAS IN AMERICAN CULTURE
architecturally beautiful as the B of A or even place where they can find counseling, friends
the TransAmerica. But unlike those buildings, and most of all, hope. Oh, without this Cen-
it has a “heart and soul.” ter, there would still be places they could go.
Now would you believe this? The city wants The Tenderloin. Market Street. The St. Francis.
to tear it down. For a parking garage. This They’ll find counseling, all right. And they’ll
building — 330 Grove — is our Gay Community find friends. At so much per friend. But they
Center. Our Gay Community Center. Because won’t find much hope.
it has meaning to the Gay people of this city, Do you blame me if I accuse the present
because for us it has both “heart and soul,” Board of Supervisors of being unresponsive to
we’ve chosen to pass up the larger hotels, the needs of the Gay community? Would you
those palaces of marble and ice, and have our deny it if I said the situation is not unique,
dinner here. that the Board is unresponsive to the needs of
Consider this Center. Without it, a few other groups, both ethnic and social, as well?
nights ago where would those thousand gays What about the desire of the Board to move
who gather in the aftermath of Dade County the pornography “Combat Zone” into the lap
gone? Where would they have gathered? of Hunter’s Point? Were the people of Hunter’s
Where would the people go who attend the Point consulted? When the Black community
multitude of Gay community meetings here? objected, they were told “it wasn’t planned
Where would the people congregate who that way, it just happened!”
want to take part in the fight to Save Our A few years ago, they closed the Sears store
Human Rights, in Gay Action, in Lesbians in the Mission district. The store was originally
United, in the dozens of other groups who the doorway to the Mission and our city’s Latin
meet here? community. It provided employment, it drew
In the urban wars, this building has people from other neighborhoods into the Mis-
already earned its purple heart. It’s played sion so that the economic outlook of the entire
a major part in bringing together a divided area benefitted.
people. Without 330 Grove, we would never Today, paradoxically enough, it’s being
have been able to get it together, as the saying turned into an unemployment office. I don’t
goes. And right now I would like to give credit need to tell you what kind of depressing trade-
to Paul Hardman, without whose foresight off that is. . . .
and courage this community center would And those are only a few examples. . . . 15
not exist. And why is it in the shape it is There is probably no minority in this city that
in — almost. hasn’t been ignored — on the human level — by
Because our Supervisors want to tear this 10 the present Board of Supervisors. It’s no longer
building down. For a parking garage. the Seniors, the unemployed, the Asian commu-
For months, this building has served as a nity, the Gay, the Blacks, the Latins and so forth.
focal point for the Gay Community. It’s where They’re all US. It’s US against THEM. If you add
we meet. It’s our own little section of the City’s up all the USes, you’ll find we outnumber the
turf. Responsible Gay people have tried for God THEMS. And yet the THEMS control.

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