Category Archives: Gay Marriage
March for Marriage Equality July 13th
March on Chicago
for Marriage Equality
1 PM, Saturday, July 13
Corner of Michigan Avenue and Congress Parkway
Nothing
is inevitable in the fight for civil rights. While some on our side
were assuring us marriage equality would pass by the end of May, the
other side was mobilizing and rallying to scare representatives out of
doing the right thing.
We need to show everyone that love is louder than hate. We need to show
that the voices for equality outnumber the voices for fear and
small-mindedness. We need to hit the streets!
We can still get it done this year if we all join in. This is not over!
Let’s show our representatives that we’re not giving up on marriage
equality without a fight!
Illinois Equal Marriage Advocates Plan March on Springfield Oct 22
A day after more
than one million gathered to celebrate Pride in Chicago at a parade
dominated by calls for equal marriage, marriage advocates in Illinois
have announced further details for the March on Springfield for Marriage
Equality on Oct. 22.
The march will be organized by a group of co-chairs drawn from a
diverse cross-section of Illinois’ lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender
and queer communities. Among the 13 statewide co-chairs announced today
are 6 women and 7 men with diverse ethnic, racial, religious, and
professional backgrounds. The March on Springfield, set for the first
scheduled day of the legislature’s fall veto session, will operate
separately and alongside efforts by Illinois Unites, the broad coalition
of more than 50 organizations working to pass equal marriage in
Illinois, as well as with grassroots activist groups.
“Marriage equality is supported by a majority of Illinoisans and has
new urgency given actions by the U.S. Supreme Court last week,” the new
group of co-chairs said in a joint statement. “When the Supreme Court
struck down DOMA, married couples in 13 states and the District of
Columbia gained benefits that are denied to people in Illinois. On Oct. 22,
we call on Illinoisans from every walk of life and from every district
to come to Springfield and demand full equality for everyone in our
State.”
The group also announced early details on how corporations, small
businesses, and volunteers can get involved in the effort to get people
to Springfield. These include crowd sourced funding through an IndieGogo
campaign to be launched next week, specially priced bus rentals, and a
business partnership campaign to facilitate broad-based participation by
companies and their employees in the March. To learn how your
organization or company can get involved, visit the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/
March on Springfield co-chairs include:
- Solomon Arnold: College student, media personality, and HIV/AIDS educator in the African American house ball community.
- Tracy Baim:
Journalist, filmmaker, author, Co-vice chair of the Chicago Gay Games
and publisher is publisher of Windy City Times newspaper.
- Kevin Boyer:
Marketing professional, community organizer, former Co-vice chair of
the Chicago Gay Games, and co-chair of GLAAD Chicago’s Leadership
Council.
- Buff Carmichael: Longtime media professional, former publisher of the Prairie Flame, and activist in Springfield.
- Brandy Donaldson: Rock Island-based media professional and activist within the African American lesbian community.
- Emmanuel Garcia:
Latino youth activist working with Association of Latin Men for Action,
Crossroads Fund, Chicago’s largest queer youth prom and Cicero’s LGBT
community.
- Brent Holman-Gomez: Activist working within the welcoming church movement, immigration equality, and international LGBTQI organizations.
- Kim Hunt: Executive Director of Affinity, an African American LBT women’s group, who was also an organizer of the Chicago Gay Games.
- Naomi Lahiri:
Queer feminist with expertise in Asian issues, outreach for trans*
people of Asian descent, immigrant issues, and domestic violence
outreach.
- Alexis Martinez:
Transgender activist working on cross-generation work, the Dyke March
plus Latino, living wage, education and healthcare issues.
- Chris Mullins: Activist and LGBT rights advocate and Chair of Lambda Legal’s Chicago Leadership Council
- Edith Nieves: Long-time activist on union, lesbian, sports and Latina issues; runs Sisters 4LGBTQ Community, a lesbian social network.
- Max Smith:
Activist for four decades especially focused on African American men
and religious issues, and as a member of Adodi, an African-American
men’s organization.
About the March
The March on Springfield for Marriage Equality will take place on Oct. 22, 2013,
the scheduled first day of the fall veto session of the Illinois state
legislature. The “March on Springfield” is part of a broad grassroots
strategy to secure final passage of Senate Bill 10, the “Religious
Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act,” already approved by the Illinois
Senate. Once adopted, Illinois will become the 14th state plus the
District of Columbia, to treat all of its citizens equally under state
marriage laws. More details are available on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/
NOH8 portrait of Congresswoman Robin Kelly, IL02
NOH8 is every where!
Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage
Act and California’s Proposition 8, the NOH8 Campaign on Monday
released portrait photos of 67 new members of Congress
standing in support of marriage equality.
Campaign featured a record-setting number of Congressional participants,
including
Congresswoman Robin Kelly, of Illinois’ 2nd District. The class of 2013 brings the total of Congressional participants in the NOH8 portrait campaign over three years to 100 members.
Congresswoman Kelly said: “Love can
never be silenced. We’re created equally and therefore have the right
to love equally and I am proud to stand up for that right.”
The iconic NOH8 portraits, created by NOH8 Campaign
co-founders Adam Bouska and Jeff Parshley, feature individuals posing
with duct tape over their mouths to symbolize the voices of equality
being silenced by laws like the discriminatory
Defense of Marriage Act and California’s Proposition 8. In addition,
the NOH8 face tattoo worn by participants symbolizes solidarity with
others who are also standing up for equality.
Gay Marriage Battle is About to Heat up in Illinois
SPRINGFIELD, Ill.— Despite urging from President Barack Obama in his
home state and fierce on-the-ground campaigning, a legislative measure
that would have made Illinois the 13th state to allow same-sex couples
to marry didn’t rally enough support from lawmakers in the House.
The
bill’s sponsor, Democratic Rep. Greg Harris, gave an emotional
testimony before lawmakers, explaining that he simply didn’t have the 60
votes the measure needed to pass and wouldn’t be calling it for a vote.
For weeks, he’d been furiously lobbying his colleagues, including
members of the House Black Caucus.
(I know that artwork depicts California – but I thought it was fitting)
“Several of my colleagues have indicated they would not be willing to
cast a vote on this legislation today … and I’ve never been sadder to
accept such request,” he said. “They asked me for time to go back to
their districts and reach out to their minds and hearts.”
After a string of marriage equality victories across the
country, the legislature in Illinois has failed to deliver. With earlier
passage of the bill in the Senate, active support from the Governor, and
enthusiasm and energy from supporters in the House — same-sex couples in
Illinois were ready to celebrate their love and equality.
But today, the House let us down.
On May 30, 2012, Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Illinois each
filed lawsuits on behalf of same-sex couples seeking the freedom to marry.
Lambda Legal represents 16 same-sex couples and their children from across the
state. The couples have been together between 6 and 48 years, and 10 of the
couples are raising children. Barring same-sex couples and their children from
marriage is a violation of the Illinois Constitution’s guarantee of equal
protection and due process.
Denouncing what they
are calling the “Epic Fail / Epic Betrayal” of Illinois Democrats
failure to pass SB 10, the state’s equal marriage rights bill last night, gay
activists and their allies are calling an emergency response protest for 8 PM,
Saturday, June 1 beginning at the corner of Halsted and Roscoe Streets in
Chicago.
Crain’s
poll showing Illinoisans favoring the equal marriage rights bill by a
nearly two-to-one margin, and Democrats holding a huge majority in the Illinois
General Assembly, the usual excuses of pro-LGBT legislation being held up by
Republican conservatives didn’t hold water.
have been a cakewalk instead became an epic fail. Activists are denouncing what they say was a
consistent failure by the bill’s sponsors to reach out to other minority
communities and involve the LGBT community itself in messaging, and instead ran
a top-down corporate campaign such as has been responsible for previous epic
failures, such as California’s Proposition 8.
Speaker Mike Madigan, the de facto
leader of the Illinois Democratic Party, is responsible for this abject
betrayal,” said Andy Thayer, long-time equal marriage rights activist and
co-founder of the Gay Liberation Network.
“Anyone who knows anything about Illinois politics knows that
Speaker Mike Madigan owns the House – if he had insisted on a positive vote
from his caucus, it would have passed.
Madigan has repeatedly shoveled millions of tax dollars to his wealthy cronies,
leaving the state’s finances in a total mess, but when it comes to passing
civil rights legislation, he refused to spend any political capital.”
protest is sponsored by the Gay Liberation Network and the Civil Rights
Agenda. For more information, contact
the Gay Liberation Network at 773.209.1187 or email LGBTliberation@aol.com
Illinois GOP Chair Pat Brady FORCED TO RESIGN Over Gay Marriage Debate
WHAT IS THIS? ALABAMA??
Brady, rather famously, came out in support of gay marriage in
January of this year, and even made phone calls to lawmakers urging them
to support gay marriage legislation before the Illinois legislature.
And now he’s politically-dead, killed by a Republican party so
permeated with hate and intolerance that even in a moderate-Republican
state like Illinois, the GOP just couldn’t stomach having a gay friendly man as
party chair.
In 2013, when 11 American states have already legalized gay
marriage, Illinois Republicans are so hateful and bigoted that they
would destroy a man for daring to speak out in favor of civil rights.
If the state of Illinois DOES NOT PASS Marriage Equality, it will be a sad day, for our State.
Are all Republicans Against Gay Marriage?
Illinois lawmakers return to Springfield this week from a two-week break. That means Marriage Equality will be back on the table.
NOM IS READY TO FIGHT US! They are THREATENING Republican officials!
Meanwhile, NOM is rattling its sabre again, reiterating its pledge to spend $250K to defeat GOP legislators who support same-sex marriage:
“Any Republican in Illinois who betrays
the cause of marriage will be casting a career-ending vote and will be
held accountable to their constituents,” said Brian Brown, NOM’s
president. “We will spend whatever it takes—hundreds of thousands of
dollars if necessary—to remove them from office, just as we did three of
the four turncoat Republican state Senators in New York who were
responsible for gay ‘marriage’ passing there. We will not hesitate to
support pro-family Democrats to replace them, as our record in New York
proves.”
Marriage Equality March in Chicago and 50 States
DOMA and Proposition 8.
challenge the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
and California’s Proposition 8 – are fundamentally about whether LGBT
Americans can enjoy the same freedoms and opportunities as everyone
else.
presence and that of your friends and others will make a difference in
the continuing national struggle for equality for all. Join us as we
rally next to the Federal Court in Chicago’s Federal Plaza, corner of
Adams and Dearborn Streets, at 5:30 p.m. on March 25, 2013.
will be followed a candlelight march from Federal Plaza to Pioneer Plaza
(By the Tribune Tower). Please remember to bring a candle. Please
spread the word and add your friends to this invite. Tell the SCOTUS we
demand Marriage EquALLity Now!
Civil Rights Agenda (TCRA) and Gay Liberation Network (GLN) are
supporting organizations. Check FACEBOOK for additional details and
supporters.
Illinois Republican Chairman Pat Brady is in Hot Water for Vocally Supporting Marriage Equality
THIS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2013, is the last and final big vote for Marriage Equality in Illinois. It has successfully passed the Senate, and Tuesday the House will vote.
The majority of Illinoisans are hoping that their state legislature
will move to legalize same-sex marriage this year — and are more
passionate in that belief than opponents of such legislation.
In a Crain’s/Ipsos poll of 600 Illinois adults, 50 percent of respondents supported the marriage equality bill that the state Senate approved last week.
On the other side of the issue, only 29 percent of respondents opposed
the bill, while 20 percent said they were unsure or had mixed feelings
about the issue.
HOWEVER, Republicans in positions of power ARE NOT ALLOWED to be pro-Marriage Equality! HOW CRAZY IS THAT??
Just last month, Illinois Republican Chairman Pat Brady started calling on lawmakers to support marriage equality.
At the time, Brady said: “Giving gay and lesbian couples the freedom to
get married honors the best conservative principles. It strengthens
families and reinforces a key Republican value – that the law should
treat all citizens equally.”
Will Illinois Gay Couples Get a BIG VALENTINES DAY Present
Will Illinois Gay and Lesbian Couple get a BIG VALENTINES PRESENT?
Senate President John Cullerton
(D-Chicago) wants Feb. 14 to be the day his legislative chamber votes to
legalize gay marriages in Illinois.
“I’d like to pass it out of committee
next week and pass it on Valentine’s Day,” Cullerton told the Chicago
Sun-Times in a meeting Thursday with
the newspaper’s Editorial Board.
Cullerton
said he believes the legislation, Senate Bill 10, has the necessary 30
votes to pass and move to the House, clearing a major hurdle in making
Illinois the 10th state to legalize same-sex marriages.
Breaking News! Illinois Senate PASSES Marriage Equality
We’re getting there!!!With your help, the first legislative step has succeeded. The Senate Executive Committee just voted for the freedom to marry!
This is a historic moment: For the first time ever, an
Illinois legislative body took a vote on extending the freedom to
marry. And thanks to the work that all of you have done, the measure
won!
the House of Representatives.
with your Senator to make sure that a “yes” vote is recorded.
If you haven’t already, please call or email your legislators today. If you need contact information, click HERE.
Illinois
Senate Democrats delayed a floor vote Thursday on legislation to make
the state the 10th in the nation to legalize gay marriage, but the sponsor expressed confidence there would be enough votes to pass it soon.
Sen. Heather Steans said two supportive Democrats and a Republican
weren’t present for the General Assembly’s lame-duck session, forcing
her to pull back from pressing the issue that had momentum from the
November elections and public encouragement from President Barack Obama.
But Steans, a Chicago Democrat, said the delay would only
push a vote into next week or, at the latest, soon after the new
Legislature is sworn in Jan. 9.
“This is definitely a question of when, not if,” Steans said. “This is the right thing to be doing.”
Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Prez Obama Push for Illinois Gay Marriage
President Obama
has waded into a same-sex marriage debate in his home state of Illinois
– with the White House saying the president would vote for the measure
if he were still in the legislature.
considered by state legislatures, he believes in treating everyone
fairly and equally, with dignity and respect,” White House spokesman
Shin Inouye told the Chicago Sun-Times on Saturday.
couples who are in loving, committed relationships, and want to marry,
from doing so,” Inouye continued. “Were the President still in the
Illinois State Legislature, he would support this measure that would
treat all Illinois couples equally.”
Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act,” as early as this week, the Sun-Times
reported.
Marriage Equality is Coming to Illinois!
WE NEED 30 SECONDS
Assembly are ready to move the legislation to a vote. Equality Illinois
is dedicating their efforts to leaving no stone unturned to achieving that
goal.
However, as you may have heard from reports today, our opposition is
gearing up as well, attempting to flood the lawmakers with their
negative messages.
We need to keep the momentum going and make sure the legislators hear from you! Can you take a moment and send an email to your legislator TODAY?
Please be sure to include why marriage equality matters to YOU and make
it personal. AND, don’t forget to share this on Facebook, Twitter and
with your friends and family!
We can’t pass this bill without your help. That is why in
the weeks leading up to lame duck session we will be keeping you
regularly updated and asking you to take regular action.
The time is now to act and make marriage a reality!
Just fill out your zip code! And you can automatically send out a message to your legislators! It’s so fast. PLEASE HELP SPREAD THE WORD!
RAHM Pushes for Marriage Equality in Illinois
University Club in Molene Refuse to Host Lesbian Wedding
The historical University Club in Molene created a stir this week. When a Taylor Shumaker, a lesbian got a tour and inquired about renting the hall, the manager Kristen Stewart said she could rent to homosexuals.
In a phone interview with WQAD, Stewart says it is all true, and defended her right to refusal.
“I am a biblical Christian and I do not
believe in homosexual marriage, that’s correct. And because marriage is a
covenant that God created for man and woman, as a biblical Christian, I
cannot help them into or celebrate that sin,” said Stewart.
Stewart is the wife of the president of the University Club, and daughter-in-law of its owners.
According to Illinois laws, this is against to law to refuse homosexuals couples!
Kristen Stewarts husband, who is President of the University Club, says his wife mis-spoke, and they WILL rent to homosexuals! – Perhaps his lawyer said he’d better correct the issue….
Illinois Civil Unions – One Year Later
Separate and still not equal.
It is clear that a lot of heterosexual people do not want gay couples using the word “marriage” – but the reality is, marriage is marriage and comes with 100% full benefits. I do not care what your church believes. The government recognizes are “marriage” as coming with full benefits and rights.
Marriage is a unique legal status conferred by and recognized by
governments all over the world. It brings with it a host of reciprocal
obligations, rights and protections. It is also a cultural
institution. No other word has that power and no other status can
provide that protection.
Married couples have 1,138 federal rights and protections.
ALLEGEDLY, Civil Unions provide legal protection to couples at the state law
level, but omits federal protections, as well as the dignity, clarity,
security and power of the word “marriage”.
Civil unions give
couples the right to make funeral and end-of-life decisions, the right
to share a room in a nursing home, automatic hospital visitation,
adoption and parental rights, pension benefits, inheritance rights, the
right to decide how to dispose of a partner’s remains, and the right not
to testify against each other in court.
But a lot of the biggies are missing; like Social Security benefits upon death, disability or retirement of spouse, as well as benefits for minor children.
And how about Exemptions from penalties on IRA and pension rollovers? and Exemptions from estate taxes when a spouse dies ??
Nearly 5,000 couples have filed for Civil Union status in Illinois.
Civil unions grants SOME rights, but even then, many LGBT couples testify they are not treated with the same respect as a heterosexual married couple.
Equality Illinois did a study and survey that shows the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act did not provide
civil union couples with the same protections as civil marriage, as
promised one year ago.
Separate and Unequal—A Cicil Union is still Second Class Status.
Check out the informative study online.
Sponsored by
EQIL, creating change in Illinois!
BREAKING NEWS! Illinois Attorney General will Join The Fight for Gay Marriage
When a state’s
Attorney General intervenes in a lawsuit challenging the legality of
that state’s laws, the Attorney General usually sides with the defense.
Not so in the cases of the Darby v. Orr and Lazaro v. Orr, the two lawsuits filed last week in Illinois, which challenge the state’s civil unions law.
From MetroWeekly:
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D) will be joining Lambda
Legal and the ACLU in arguing that Illinois’s civil unions law does not
meet the state’s constitutional guarantees of equal
protection, raising the question of what the Cook County clerk of
courts — the named defendant — will do in its response to the
lawsuits.The move came just two days after Lambda Legal and the ACLU each filed lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the civil union law.
In a pair of June 1 filings in Darby v. Orr and Lazaro v. Orr, which were reviewed by Metro Weekly,
the attorney general’s office has requested to intervene in the cases
… In the requests, Madigan writes, “Petitioner respectfully requests
the right to intervene in this case to present the Court with arguments
that explain why the challenged statutory provisions do not satisfy the
guarantee of equality under the Illinois Constitution.”On June 25, the Attorney General’s Office will make the request to intervene in Darby, which was brought by Lambda Legal. On June 26, the office will make the intervention request in Lazaro, which was brought by the ACLU.
LGBT Wedding Expo Sunday March 25th
This is a very fun event – we went last year and you got lots of great ideas! Flowers, cakes, photography, caterers , cocktails and more!
4th Annual Gay & Lesbian Wedding Expo in Chicago!
Couples throughout Illinois are continuing to joyfully plan their civil union ceremonies
– JOIN US as we celebrate together!
The
4th Annual Same Love, Same Rights LGBT Wedding Expo will be hosted once
again by the beautiful Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza, with a signature
view of the river and is scheduled for Sunday March 25th, 2012.
(easy access right off the Brown Line M. Mart exit!)
This year’s event promises more excitement than ever, with New
Planning Trends, Fresh Giveaways & Samples, and over 30 select
gay-friendly exhibitors to help create the ceremony of your dreams.
Event planners, officiants, ceremony & reception venues,musicians
and DJs, photographers, caterers, floral artists and more! Travel,
health, home and family-planning businesses will also be represented.
First 200 couples will receive a
keepsake fabric Swag Bag! Exciting Raffle Giveaways this year include
Sightseeing Tours courtesy of Anita Dee Yacht Charters!
This
event is free to attend; $5.00 donation per person is suggested, but we
do ask that you pre-register for free tickets. 25% will go directly to
Equality Illinois!
RESERVE NOW ONLINE!
Civil Unions Burdened with Complex Illinois State Income Tax Rules
By Linu Thomas
Civil Unions became effective on June 1, 2011 in Illinois through the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act.
Under this law, partners in a civil union must file a joint Illinois Income Tax returns as married couples beginning in January. Although, the Illinois Department of Revenue did not make it clear if they were going to accept joint returns when the law went into effect, it has now mandated them. Because partners in a same-sex civil union cannot file joint federal returns, they will have to take special steps this year to file their Illinois returns.
If you are an opposite-sex civil union and you and your partner are treated as spouses for federal income tax purposes, you have the option to file an Illinois state income tax return as married filing jointly or married filing separately just like any other married couple. This favorable filing status for federal purposes does not apply for same-sex civil unions. Because same-sex civil unions are not recognized under federal law, partners to a same-sex civil union are not permitted to file joint federal income tax returns or to claim tax breaks or protections that the federal government affords to married spouses.
For state purposes, Illinois allows same-sex civil unions to file a state income tax return either as married filing jointly or married filing separately, but the Illinois Department of Revenue does not make it easy for these couples to be compliant. In order to file either married filing jointly or married filing separately you must complete a “mock” federal return with the same filing status you picked for the state return. For example, if you and your same-sex partner choose to file a joint Illinois return, you must complete a federal “as-if-married-filing-jointly” return, for Illinois purposes only. Also, if you and your same-sex partner choose to file separate Illinois returns, you must complete federal “as-if-married filing separately” returns, for Illinois purposes only. It is very important that you do not send the “mock” federal return you prepared to the IRS. The “mock” returns will be used for Illinois purposes only. When completing your “mock” federal return please include all schedules and attachments, applying all the federal rules for the married filing status you choose. In addition, on the Illinois income tax return you must enter “as-if-married” federal information where Illinois requires federal information. The worst part of this process is that same-sex civil unions will not be allowed to properly file using electronic methods (E-File). Same-sex civil unions must file a paper return.
Special Situations
Special situations you may encounter while completing your federal “as-if-married” return for IL state income tax purposes only.
Earned Income Credit – You must compute your federal earned income credit using the income of both partners in order to properly calculate the correct amount for the state.
“As-if-Married-Filing-Separately” – If you choose this filing method for your “mock” federal return remember that you cannot claim an earned income credit or receive a federal deduction for student loan interest and higher education tuition.
Capital Losses – If you have a net capital loss this year or a net capital loss carryover to this year and offset it against your partner’s capital gain on a recomputed joint return, you may not carry your capital loss over to any other year, even if you file separately in that year or file a joint return with a different spouse.
Net-Operating Losses – If you have a federal net operating loss this year or a federal net operating loss carryback or carryover to this year and you use that loss to offset income of your partner on a recomputed joint return, you may not carry that loss to any other year, even if you file separately in that year or file a joint return with a different spouse.
Please refer to the Illinois Department of Revenue website for additional information on same-sex civil union tax filing procedures or call Provident Light Advisors at 866-256-9621 to schedule an appointment to discuss your return. Provident Light Advisors LLC provides accounting, tax, and consulting services. We are simple, honest, and affordable. Since we are a family owned business we treat our customers as members of our own family. No matter what the time of the day we are here to answer your accounting and tax questions. Provident Light Advisors is also a proud member of the Chicago Area Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.
Linu Thomas, Partner
Provident Light Advisors LLC
22 W. Washington Street Suite 1500, Chicago, IL 60602
(312) 957-5751
Freedom to Marry – this Sunday Feb. 12th 10:30 AM
10:30 AM, in front of Holy Name Cathedral,
735 N. State Street, Chicago
With the wins in California and Washington, some Springfield legislators say they will now make a serious push for equal marriage legislation this year in Illinois.
As they do so, we can expect that the usual suspects to loudly bray
about how “unfair” equal rights legislation is, and demonize LGBT people
in the process.
Chief among them will be Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George.
George is already on record comparing lesbians and gays to the KKK, and
repeatedly defended that insulting comparison before finally issuing
what many considered an inadequate apology. The “apology” implied that
he still thinks that many lesbians and gays are fascists, and he
justified his blasts against us by playing the victim card, saying he
was motivated by his alleged fear for “the liberty of the church.”
But he’s hardly a victim. George, as head of the
National Conference of Catholic Bishops, spent tens of thousands backing
the anti-gay referendums Proposition 8 in California and Question 1 in
Maine. After the passage of the civil unions bill in Illinois, George
pompously predicted, “I expect to die in bed, my successor will die in
prison and his successor will die a martyr in the public square.”
As marriage equality moves forward this year in Illinois, look for
Cardinal George to once again take his bigotry out from under wraps,
trying to lean on Illinois legislators to vote against equality.
As a cover for this bigotry, look for him to try to play the victim
role again, falsely stating that equal marriage legislation in Illinois
would somehow force the Catholic Church to celebrate marriages it
chooses not to.
Look for him to violate the church’s tax-exempt status by using its institutional power to advocate on legislation.
We can sit back and take it –
as Californians fatefully did with the Mormon Church before the passage
of Proposition 8 – or we can proactively push back against this bigotry
now.
Please come to Freedom to Marry Day 2012 at 10:30 AM this Sunday, Feb. 12 in front of Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State Street,
and stand with the majority of lay Catholics and others of good will
who support equal rights for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
people.
This protest was initiated by the Gay Liberation Network and is supported by the 8th Day Center for Justice, the Chicago Rainbow Sash Movement, Dignity/Chicago and Equality Illinois.
For more information, email LGBTliberation@aol.com
BREAKING NEWS – Marriage Equality Bill introduced in Illinois
Moments ago, Representatives Greg Harris, Deb Mell, and Kelly Cassidy
filed a marriage equality bill in Illinois General Assembly.
We commend these leaders for taking yet another step towards
full equality for lesbian and gay families in Illinois, and we are
grateful to them for their leadership. This is just the beginning: the
road to marriage equality is sure to be long, but it is one that we must
travel together.
In following experiences of thousands of couples in civil unions
over the past year, we confirmed what we always suspected to be true:
that creating a separate institution to provide substantially the same
rights did not add up to full equality under the law. A pharmacist who
denied prescription pick-up to the patient’s civil union partner didn’t
think it’s the same thing as marriage. A coroner who refused to issue a
death certificate to civil union partner survivor did not think that
civil unions are the same as marriage. Tax preparers, estate planners,
employers and employees do not think that civil unions are the same as
marriage. Separate is not equal. And we at Equality Illinois will not
rest until gay and lesbian couples in every corner of the state – who
are equal in love – are also equal in marriage.
Just yesterday, the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th
Circuit held that California’s denial of marriage in favor of domestic
partnerships for same sex couples violated the U.S. Constitution.
In days, weeks, and months to come, we will share with you our strategy for moving forward toward marriage equality. Please join us in this urgent and important work. We cannot succeed without you.
Very truly yours,
Bernard Cherkasov
Chief Executive Officer
