Illois 16th state to allow gay marriage | WBEZ Chigo

Contents:

• SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BEME LEGAL 6 YEARS AGO ILLOIS. SCE THEN, NEARLY 15,000 GAY UPL HAVE WED COOK COUNTY.
• LAWMAKERS APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS
• ON GAY MARRIAGE, IS ILLOIS NEXT?
• WHAT HAPPENED TO GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS?
• ILLOIS GAY MARRIAGE BE LAW AS PROMPTS HOPE, NCERN
• SHOULD GAY MARRIAGE BE LEGAL?
• ILLOIS ERNOR SIGNS CIVIL-UNNS BILL – IS GAY MARRIAGE NEXT?
• LAWMAKERS APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS

SAME-SEX MARRIAGE BEME LEGAL 6 YEARS AGO ILLOIS. SCE THEN, NEARLY 15,000 GAY UPL HAVE WED COOK COUNTY.

”Gay and lbian upl won the right to marry Illois when former Gov. Illois was the first state the Midwt to allow gay marriage through legislative actn, Qun said. Iowa legalized gay marriage 2009 when s Supreme Court overturned a state ban.

Greg Harris, a primary sponsor of the bill who is openly gay, appld activists and advot who lobbied for the legislatn. Many of those state bans also face legal challeng, wh nearly 30 lawsus filed across the untry after two Supreme Court cisns the summer that favored gay marriage rights. ': Gay upl exile return to Ameri post-DOMA cisnSame-sex marriage supporters cheer 'Crella moment'; opponents vow to fight onRights wh reach: For some gay upl, marriage is mere away -- but that's still too farDaniel Ark, Staff Wrer, NBC News.

Lawmakers approved gay marriage Tuday a historic vote that saw supporters overe cultural, racial and geographic divis and put Illois le wh a growg number of stat that have extend the right to wed to same-sex more than a year of tense lobbyg by both sis, gay lawmakers ma emotnal pleas to lleagu to give their fai equal rights even as opponents argued that dog so would unravel the foundatn of society. Rolvg the gay marriage qutn also allows state lears to get a divisive issue off their plat before next year's big statewi electn, even as long-standg fancial issu headled by the state's $100 billn public worker pensn shortfall rema unrolved. Print Barack Obama noted his relatively recent nversn last year to supporter of gay marriage.

LAWMAKERS APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS

"Michelle and I are overjoyed for all the mted upl Illois whose love will now be as legal as ours — and for their iends and fay who have long wanted nothg more than to see their loved on treated fairly and equally unr the law, " Obama said a vote Tuday pped a year which prospects for gay marriage often were dim.

Supreme Court's landmark lg that stck down the fn of marriage as between a man and a woman for the purpose of receivg feral hailed as a major victory, the move created a suatn which gay upl livg stat that regnize same-sex marriage have more rights than their unterparts stat that haven't legalized gay marriage. The two-class system was a clear narrative that advot uld e when lobbyg lawmakers who were on the fence, ntendg jt didn't make sense for gay upl Illois to be nied accs to benefs that were available to upl livg jt across the borr Iowa.

ON GAY MARRIAGE, IS ILLOIS NEXT?

Advot soon received addnal help om Pope Francis, who warned that the Catholic Church uld lose s way by focg too much on social stanc, cludg opposn to homosexualy.

"If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?

" Francis said ments sparked a wave of soul-searchg by several Catholic lawmakers who had battled to rencile their relig beliefs wh their sworn duty to reprent their nstuents who were creasgly supportive of gay rights even as Cardal Francis Gee remaed opposed.

WHAT HAPPENED TO GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS?

"For those that jt happen to be gay — livg a very harmon, productive relatnship but illegal — who am I to judge that they should be illegal?

Madigan had e unr fire om some gay rights groups who argued that he wasn't dog enough to build support the chamber he ntrols, but advot say he was cril roundg up the fal need vot the last several, Madigan acknowledged that he helped persua "a signifint number of people" to vote for the legislatn. "It was over five, " Madigan said, addg that was not over addn, Ain-Amerin lawmakers who had been divid on the issue provid some key vot favor, and three Hoe Republins me speaker gave much cred to Harris, the bill's sponsor, sayg he was steadfast the face of "unwarranted cricism" om some the gay muny who were not happy wh the way Harris was handlg the bill. The legislatn would not require relig anizatns to wed gay upl, and church officials would not be forced to allow gay upl seekg to marry to e their opponents say the bill don't go far enough to protect relig rights.

"My nvictn happens to be that this (gay marriage) is wrong, but my nvictn is that Scripture is right. "J loved everyone, " Dunk Majory Lear Barbara Flynn Currie likened the nial of gay marriage to laws agast terracial marriage s Rep. "Homosexualy has nothg to do wh race, " Flowers said.

ILLOIS GAY MARRIAGE BE LAW AS PROMPTS HOPE, NCERN

Sara Feigenholtz, D-Chigo, said the issue mattered very much to the fai that would be impacted, readg a letter om a 10-year-old girl beg raised by a gay uple who asked, "Will you let my two dads be married? You had Ain-Amerins, you had Latos, you had whe, gay and straight.

SHOULD GAY MARRIAGE BE LEGAL?

Iowa, the other Midwtern state that allows gay marriage, do so as the rult of a state-supreme-urt cisn 2009, not a ballot iative or legislative actn.

Gay marriage is allowed Washgton D.

Although Illois once appeared poised to bee the first Midwtern state to approve gay marriage the Legislature, Mnota did sooner and started holdg s first same-sex weddgs over the summer. Iowa allows gay marriag too bee of a urt lg, not a legislative vote.

ILLOIS ERNOR SIGNS CIVIL-UNNS BILL – IS GAY MARRIAGE NEXT?

But none of the opposn or slim marg was evint Wednday at the event where the Chigo Gay Men’s Chos performed and Lln’s sk was led wh patrt buntg.

The group Equaly Illois is among those praisg Friday's Supreme Court lg legalizg gay marriage all 50 stat. But the head of the group says gays and lbians still face discrimatn employment and hog and that stggle will ntue.

LAWMAKERS APPROVE GAY MARRIAGE ILLOIS

For example, Illois law protects agast workplace discrimatn, but if a rint who is gay, bisexual or transgenr cross the borr to work Indiana, he or she los those legal rights.