Two hundred and fifty marriage licenses were issued to same sex couples in the week immediately following the ACLU of Illinois and Lambda’s successful federal court petition which led to Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman’s ruling granting marriage equality in Cook County. Marriage licenses application numbers, released by Cook County Clerk David Orr, for the week of February 21 through the 28, show the divergence of professional backgrounds of the applicants as well as a breakdown by gender and residency. More than half of the same sex applicants granted licenses live in Chicago or in one of 55 suburban communities. A dozen couples live in other states including Kentucky, South Carolina and Texas.

"The first day we were able to issues marriage licenses to any same-sex couple in Illinois was extraordinary and historic," said Cook County Clerk David Orr in the release. "Before long, it will be a regular occurrence in every county in Illinois. That is equality."

Read more at The Chicago Tribune's website.

Quad Cities Channel 6 TV asked its viewers their reaction to legislation now working its way through the Illinois General Assembly that would criminalize posting, on the internet, sexual images of a former intimate partner. Sponsored by State Senator Michael Hastings (D-OrlandPark) the bill recently passed the Illinois Senate and now awaits House action. It calls for a possible three year prison sentence and a $25,000 fine upon conviction. Comments from Channel 6 viewers focused on the harshness of the prison sentence. Channel 6 also reported that critics of the bill worried that its language was unintentionally too broad and could lead to misapplication if it becomes law as it is now written. Ed Yohnka, ACLU of Illinois Executive Director of Communications, suggested that the language should be redrafted because as currently written it could be used for other purposes:

"Let's say a senior in high school is on a class trip and a couple of friends decide to moon the bus. Somebody snaps a picture and posts it. The person who mooned could claim they are victims of revenge porn."

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The ACLU of Illinois is  saddened to learn of the death of Challis Gibbs just weeks after marrying her partner of 21 years, Elvie Jordan. The Gibbs-Jordan marriage was expedited last December by Federal Judge Sharon Coleman’s order granting early marriage licenses to same-sex couples, who because of a terminal illness, could not wait until June to wed when the state’s new marriage equality law to goes into effect.  The case, represented by the ACLU of Illinois and Lambda, established a simple process for LGBT partners to obtain a marriage license in Cook County and wed immediately if one of the couple was suffering from a life threatening disease.  That breakthrough was followed in February by a subsequent decision by Judge Coleman which nullified the state’s old but still enforced marriage discrimination laws, thereby immediately extending marriage equality to all same sex couples obtaining marriage licenses in Cook County.
Read more in The Windy City Times.