This afternoon at 3:30 CST, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn is scheduled to sign the State's marriage equality bill into law at the University of Illinois in Chicago, making Illinois the 16th State to enshrine marriage equality in law. The bill will take effect on June 1, 2014.
From the Chicago Pride website:
ChicagoPride.com has confirmed the governor will sign the bill on the desk Abraham Lincoln used to write his first inaugural address. The Chicago Sun-Times' Michael Sneed first reported the desk will be shipped Wednesday morning from Springfield to the governor's office in Chicago.The event is expected to draw thousands of people.Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel and Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon are among the political leaders expected to attend Wednesday's bill signing. (Emphasis mine.)
Not everyone will be celebrating this great advance in the march towards LGBT civil rights:
Bishop Thomas John Paprocki of Springfield says he will offer prayers of "supplication and exorcism" on Nov. 20 at approximately the same time that Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signs the marriage equality bill into law. (Via Chicago Pride.)You can read about that here, if you can stomach it.
I offer my congratulations to the State of Illinois and my LGBT sisters and brothers there on this historic day not only for Illinois, but for our nationwide struggle for equal rights.