California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed into law a bill that establishes a day recognising US gay rights leader Harvey Milk.
Harvey Milk Day will be marked in California on 22 May, Milk's birthday. The activist was assassinated in 1978.
Mr Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill last year.
In the interim, Milk was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was the subject of a film for which actor Sean Penn won an Oscar.
Milk was a leader in the gay rights movement and was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977.
According to the new law, he was the first openly gay man elected to public office in a major public city. He was assassinated in November 1978, after 11 months in the role.
We tend to think of California as being liberal, but don't forget Shwarzenegger is a Republican. It's nice to see Harvey being honoured with this day.
Governor Schwarzenegger seems to make his decisions based on which way the winds are blowing.
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