The Chicago Tribune published an article about yesterday's hearing on the motion to dismiss in the ACLU of Illinois' joint marriage lawsuit with Lambda Legal. Suzie Hutton, the partner of Danielle Cook and one of the ACLU of Illinois' plaintiffs in case, spoke with the Tribune:

After court was dismissed, Suzie Hutton, of Bloomington, said she wants to marry in Illinois out of principle.

"I'm very proud to be an Illinoisan," Hutton said. "And I want the state of Illinois to say we offer marriage to all of our citizens."

Read the rest.

WBEZ covered yesterday's hearing on the motion to dismiss in the marriage case. The ACLU of Illinois and Lambda Legal filed jointly on behalf of 25 same-sex couples seeking the freedom to marry in Illinois. WBEZ spoke with Lambda plaintiff James Darby:

James Darby, 81, also believes it’s an affirming distinction, which is why he wants the suit to move forward. The Korean War veteran has been with his partner Patrick Bova for 50 years. Darby says says he’s willing to wait another month because the right to marry is worth suing for.

“I would like to be buried at the Abraham Lincoln Cemetery in Joliet. And I would like him to be buried with me,” said Darby, the lead plaintiff in the case represented by Lambda Legal.  “Because spouses can be buried with the veteran. But that’s not happening.”

Read more and listen.

There was an article in The Chicago Tribune today about the recent law passed in Washington D.C. that eliminates the requirement for any type of surgery in order for transgender individuals to change the gender marker on their birth certificates. The article highlighted the ACLU of Illinois' victory in Grey v. Hasbrouck -- a case which won transgender Illinoisans the right to obtain new birth certificates without a genital surgery requirement. The Tribune spoke with ACLU of Illinois LGBT Project Director John Knight:

 Knight said a policy like Washington's is "ideal."

"We don't think the state should be dictating how much surgery or what kind of surgery a person needs."

Read the entire article (PDF).