SIR had become powerful enough for political maneuvering . In 1971 SIR members Jim Foster , Rick Stokes , and '' Advocate '' publisher David Goodstein formed the Alice B. Toklas Memorial Democratic Club , known as simply " Alice " . Alice befriended liberal politicians to persuade them to sponsor bills , proving successful in 1972 when Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon obtained Feinstein 's support for an ordinance outlawing employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation . Alice chose Stokes to run for a relatively unimportant seat on the community college board . Though Stokes received 45,000 votes , he was quiet and unassuming , and did not win . Foster , however , shot to national prominence by being the first openly gay man to address a political convention . His speech at the 1972 Democratic National Convention ensured that his voice , according to San Francisco politicians , was the one to be heard when they wanted the opinions , and especially the votes , of the gay community
1972 Democratic National Convention
1972 Democratic National Convention
Harvey Milk