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The Navy just named a ship after this gay rights icon. Here's why it matters.

Harvey Milk is known for one historic first. Now it's time for one more.

Many people know about Harvey Milk's legacy as a gay rights icon. Less talked about is his history in the Navy.

From 1951 to 1955, Milk served as a diving officer aboard the U.S.S. Kittiwake, a submarine rescue ship. Milk achieved the rank of lieutenant junior grade prior to receiving an honorable discharge.

Following his career in the Navy, Milk devoted the next two decades to activism and public service, becoming the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the United States. In 1978, he took office as a member of the San Francisco board of supervisors. Sadly, less than a year later, he was shot and killed.

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