Same-sex marriages (SSM) & civil unions in Illinois.
2013-MAY/JUN: More reactions to the
Religious Freedom
and
Marriage Fairness Act
not being voted upon in the House.
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2013-MAY-31: Reaction by Freedom to Marry:
Marc Solomon, the national campaign director of Freedom to Marry, said:
"After an overwhelming victory in the Senate, today’s failure by the Illinois House is a disgrace, especially for the thousands of committed same-sex couples who want and deserve to make the ultimate vow before their friends and family and spend the rest of their lives with the person they love, protected and supported by their marriage.
Freedom to Marry is proud to be an active partner in Illinois Unites for Marriage, and is grateful for the groups that led the effort on the ground — the ACLU, Equality Illinois, and Lambda Legal. We also deeply appreciate the leadership of lead bill sponsors in the House and Senate, Representative Greg Harris and Senator Heather Steans. Make no mistake, we will fight and make our case until all Illinois families have the freedom to marry the person they love and until the legislative vote reflects the solid majority of Illinoisans and Americans who stand for treating their neighbors the way they want to be treated." 1
2013-MAY-31: National Organization for Marriage (NOM) declares major victory:
NOM is the largest national organization dedicated to maintaining marriage inequality across the U.S. Brian Brown, its President, wrote:
"This effort to redefine marriage in Illinois was one of the most fiercely contested legislative battles in the country this year. This is a great victory for our allies and supporters, as well as Illinois families who have worked tirelessly with us to preserve marriage in Illinois. We are gratified that our collective hard work has paid off in this stunning victory."
"So much for the inevitability of gay marriage. With a coalition that included strong support from the African American community as well as so many others throughout the state, we did what nobody in the intelligentsia thought was possible. This is a huge victory at a pivotal time, and totally undercuts the lie that somehow same-sex marriage is inevitable."
"Our thanks go out to champions such as the African American Clergy Coalition; Rev. James Meeks and Bishop Lance Davis; the Illinois Conference of Catholic Bishops and their director Bob Gilligan; the Illinois Family Institute and their director David Smith; the Illinois Family PAC and their director, Paul Caprio; and the Coalition of African American Pastors and their chairman, Rev. Bill Owens. Everyone pitched in everything they had to stop this ill-conceived legislation. We at NOM are honored to have been part of the coalition effort."
NOM spent well over $125,000 on grassroots activities to defeat the bill. 2
2013-MAY-31: Article in the Daily Herald described the events when the vote was not called:
"... same-sex marriage supporters couldn't find enough votes despite the national Democratic Party's support and a House where Democrats have a 71-47 advantage over Republicans.
"I think it is absolutely appalling that certain members of this body are willing to put their re-election interest in front of all interests of the families of the state," said state Rep. Sam Yingling, a Round Lake Beach Democrat and openly gay lawmaker.
Stopping same-sex marriage in a big, reliably Democratic state like Illinois is a major victory for opponents, who have seen a handful of other states approve in recent months.
"There's a lot of emotion here," said state Rep. JoAnn Osmond, an Antioch Republican. "There were a lot of people in the gallery were disappointed that the vote wasn't called. They feel very strongly they have a right to be married, and it's just not what I believe."
That emotion displayed itself on the House floor via a tearful speech by the legislation's sponosor, Democratic Rep. Greg Harris, and loud yells from onlookers.
Supporters and opponents came from across Illinois to lobby on lawmakers' last scheduled day of session.
"Me and my boyfriend had today off work so we said let's drive all the way down," said Tim Bertucci, 23, of Arlington Heights.
Harris announced he'd put off a vote until November. He said lawmakers appear to be more likely to sign off then.
"I take my colleagues at their words that they shall," Harris said. 3
2013-JUN-01: Culture News writes article titled "God Intervenes to Preserve Marriage in Illinois:"
Bishop Larry Trotter, co-chair of the African American Clergy Coalition -- an anti-marriage equality group -- said:
"Today our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has won! Pastor James Meeks, Bishop Lance Davis, and I are so proud of the God-fearing Black Caucus [in the Illinois legislature] ... who withstood the pressure of the LGBT forces and allowed God's word concerning marriage to remain between one man and one woman in Illinois." 4
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2013-JUN-02: Lambda Legal responds to the failure to vote on the SSM bill:
Jim Bennett, Director of the Midwest Regional Office of Lambda Legal, issued the following statement:
"This is a stunning failure in the Illinois House. This is too important to families across Illinois. ... Lambda Legal’s lawsuit, Darby v. Orr which was filed a year ago yesterday will move forward. The day is coming when Illinois will have the freedom to marry. Lambda Legal has been working in the Midwest for the respect of our relationships for 20 years and we won’t stop until same-sex couples in Illinois are treated with dignity and respect.
We’d like to thank Sen. Steans for passing this bill in the Senate. We thank Rep. Harris, Rep. Cassidy and Rep. Mell, who have worked so hard to see this through. However, it’s unacceptable that our community did not at least get the vote Rep. Harris promised on the House floor. We have a right to know where our elected officials stand on the fundamental right to marry the person you love. We will continue to work with them to push toward passing this critical law as soon as possible." 5
The lawsuit reference is to two suits filed on 2012-MAY-30 by Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Illinois. Plaintiffs included a total of 25 same-sex couples from Illinois who seek marriage equality. The Illinois Attorney General’s office filed papers agreeing that the existing legislation that prohibits same-sex couples from marrying is unconstitutional. The Cook County Clerk and States Attorney also agreed.
These lawsuits will now proceed, since the Legislature refuses to act.
References used:
The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.
- Joseph McCormick, "Illinois: Same-sex marriage bill withdrawn as ‘not enough votes’ to pass it ," Pink News, 2013-JUN-01, at:
- "Marriage Supporters Win Major Victory In Illinois — Effort To Redefine Marriage Fails To Gather Support And Is Tabled Without A Vote," National Orgahization for Marriage," Email, 2013-MAY-31, http://www.pinknews.co.uk
- Mike Riopell and Doug T. Graham, "House declines same-sex marriage vote," Daily Herald, 2013-MAY-31, at: http://www.dailyherald.com/
- "God Intervenes to Preserve Marriage in Illinois," Culture News, Culture News, 2013-JUN-01, at: http://culturecampaign.blogspot.ca/
- "More from Freedom to Marry," JoeMyGod, 2013-JUN-02, at: http://joemygod.blogspot.com/
Copyright © 2013 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance
Initially posted: 2013-MAY-31
Latest update: 2013-JUN-02
Author: B.A. Robinson
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