The Daily Illini newspaper out of the University of Illinois published a poignant editorial endorsing the freedom to marry bill. The bill is currently set to be heard by the House Executive Committee on Tuesday, February 26 before moving onto the House floor for a final vote. The bill passed in the Senate on Valentine's Day by 34-21.

"...the value and importance of heterosexual marriage will not be tarnished, it will not be broken, it will not be devalued or scarred. By giving someone else the freedom to make a choice about their long-term relationships in front of the law takes nothing away from heterosexual marriage."

Read the entire editorial.

A new poll from Crain's Chicago Business demonstrates that Illinoisans overwhelmingly support the freedom to marry for same sex couples. Last week, the Illinois Senate passed a measure that would grant same sex couples the freedom to marry. The legislation awaits a vote in the Illinois House:

Most Illinois residents want the Legislature to legalize same-sex marriage in the state, according to the latest results of the Crain's/Ipsos Illinois Poll.

The survey of 600 adults found that 50 percent support the gay-marriage bill that cleared the state Senate last week and now awaits action in the House. That's considerably more than the 29 percent who oppose it, with 20 percent saying they don't know or have mixed feelings on the matter.

Read the whole thing. Get involved in the fight for the freedom to marry.

Senator Daniel Biss (D) appeared on the WLS-AM radio show "Hartford and Kass" to discuss his sponsorship of a bill that would limit the use of surveillance drones by law enforcement in Illinois. The ACLU of Illinois is working with Senator Biss to ensure regulations are in place to protect privacy. Other ACLU affiliates have helped to pass similar laws in their states.

"I think that there's a nationwide interest in coalition building around this issue. For example, Virginia just passed a two year moratorium on drones, and that was a joint initiative of the ACLU, the Tea Party and the Farm Bureau. You have republican sponsorship of legislation on this issue in Florida, you've got democrats in Montana…This is an issue where because of the ideologically diverse constituency of people who have real, legitimate concerns about civil liberties, I think there's a good chance that we'll get something meaningful done."

Listen to the show.