Milk encouraged LGBT people to 'come out of the closet' during his speeches as a result of his work and his assassination-along with San Francisco mayor George Moscone-thousands of ordinary people did so. Another is Harvey Milk, the first openly gay person to be elected to political office in California, becoming the most visible LGBT politician in the world in the 1970s, after decades of resistance to LGBT people by mainstream culture. One commonly cited example is Michael McConnell and Jack Baker, the first openly gay couple to apply for a marriage license in 1971. Openly LGBT people being visible in society affects societal attitudes toward homosexuality, bisexuality, and the transgender community on a wider level. In areas that historically are not known for having (or being friendly to) LGBT people who do not remain closeted, a 'first' can make it easier for other openly LGBT persons to enter the field or for those who are closeted to come out. Openly LGBT people remain a demographic minority in most places. This list of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT) firsts by year denotes pioneering LGBT endeavors organized chronologically. ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page. Please consider splitting content into sub-articles, condensing it, or adding subheadings.
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