Sat. February 11, 2012
Chicago, IL -
Gay rights activists and community allies will show support for a gay marriage bill, which was introduced Wednesday in the Illinois General Assembly, during a protest Sunday outside Holy Name Cathedral.
State Reps. Greg Harris, Deb Mell, and Kelly Cassidy filed the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act on Wednesday. The bill provides that all laws of Illinois applicable to marriage apply equally to marriages of same-sex and different-sex couples.
The bill comes on the heels of Tuesday's ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, holding that California's denial of marriage in favor of domestic partnerships for same sex couples violated the U.S. Constitution.
With this week's victory over Proposition 8 and next week's likely passage of equal marriage legislation in Washington state, activists say "this is the year" to pass marriage rights legislation in Illinois.
The annual protest, which falls on the national Freedom to Marry Day and timed to coincide with Valentine's Day, was initiated by Chicago's Gay Liberation Network (GLN) a decade ago. This year the demonstration will take place at 10:30 a.m., Sunday in front of Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State Street.
GLN has included Cardinal George in this year's protest because of his opposition to the advancement for LGBT rights in Chicago and across Illinois.
George and the Catholic church opposed the Illinois Civil Unions Act, which was signed into law last year. As head of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, George directed money to be spent backing the anti-gay referendums in California and Maine.
GLN also noted George's controversial comparison of the LGBT community to the Ku Klux Klan and what they called his "weak" apology as added reason to protest the Cardinal.
Sunday's 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.
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