The ACLU of Illinois lost its own “Lady Liberty” in November. Harriet Hausman, our long-time and still active Board member, died just a few months shy of her 100^th birthday. We lost a courageous and unstinting voice for liberty and for humanity. Harriet’s support for the ACLU has been clear for decades, having first joined the organization as a high school student. As we head into an election year that holds grave importance for the future of our country, I—and I hope you—will continue to find inspiration in Harriet’s courageous lifetime of advocacy.

Harriet, and her late husband Marty, are legendary in the ACLU for their defense of the First Amendment. Nearly 50 years ago, when the ACLU represented the Nazis in their effort to march in suburban Skokie, Harriet and Marty travelled across the area to synagogues and other groups arguing for the need to protect free expression in our country.

Harriet’s advocacy was not limited to the First Amendment. In her nearly 40 years on the Board of the ACLU of Illinois, Harriet was a vigorous advocate for racial justice, voting rights, reproductive rights, religious liberty, immigrant rights, and those involved in the criminal legal system.  If the Constitution did not protect all of us, Harriet knew that it really protected none of us.

Harriet thought that democratic societies had a special responsibility to young people. She strongly supported the ACLU’s long-term efforts to reform Illinois’ family regulation system. Her last column for the Weekly Journal of Oak Park and River Forest, published posthumously, called for the revitalization of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.

Harriet’s commitment to young people reflected her underlying wisdom about the need to invest in future generations – not only as a human rights matter but also Was an investment in the future of our democracy. One of her many unheralded acts of generosity was her decision to fund the ACLU of Illinois’ high school education work. Harriet understood that real civic virtue depended on educating the next generation of voters about democracy, civil liberties, and human rights.

Therein lies inspiration for all of us who care about preserving our democracy, which is essential to preserving our liberty. Harriet understood that democracy is NOT a spectator sport. For our democracy to remain vital in its protection of individual rights and liberties – the foundation of the ACLU’s advocacy – each of us must participate; each of us must advocate for individual rights and liberties for all.

The 2024 elections will have a momentous impact on this country. It is up to “we the people,” to once again save our democracy from those who would corrupt its Constitution, replacing liberty with suppression, and substituting political persecution with even-handed justice.  The ACLU and its members have a critically important role in the months ahead:  we must speak vigorously about the ways in which autocratic candidates threaten our constitutional democracy; we must insist that the constitution protects all of us – people of color, women, immigrants, people of different faiths or none at all; and we must vote.  Our future depends on it.

Give a gift in memory of Harriet Hausman

Just a decade ago, Illinois signed into law the right to marry for gay and lesbian couples. 

Even before the legislature approved the measure signed by the Governor, the ACLU of Illinois was challenging the ban on gay and lesbian marriages in state court. This lawsuit was filed on behalf of nine couples from across Illinois who came forward to share their lives and demand equality. 

As we mark a decade since marriage equality came to our state we caught up with some of these couples to ask what they remember about being part of the movement for the right to marry, and what is happening in their lives today. We thank them for their bravery in making the anniversary we now celebrate a reality. 

Carlos and Richard

For us the right to marry meant that we could legally be a fully-recognized family with our son. We felt so honored to be able to join the fight in a formal manner and just remember bawling when we listened to the legislators vote live on the radio.  Recalling that moment brings back many tears of happiness.  And it feels good to know that our state victory most certainly helped influence the federal decision to confirm this right for all gay and lesbian couples across the country, even in states which never would have provided this affirmation.

We're still married, living in Evanston and our son is now 19 and the tallest in our home.  We talked about this and marriage has simply meant security to us, knowing we were legally equal.  It also has meant social equality. Although we had married in Canada and used the term "husband" previously, it felt different knowing that nobody could deny that we were, in fact, married in Illinois.  We couldn't imagine if we were still fighting for this right and remain grateful to the ACLU of IL for all your work to make this happen!

Danielle and Suzie

My wife, Danielle, and I knew we wanted to marry in 2004, so we had a commitment ceremony.  Civil unions allowed us to start moving towards equality, but it definitely did not feel equal, and having the separate term was a constant reminder that our relationship was not the same.  When Danielle and I joined the ACLU to advocate for marriage equality, the responsibility and honor of this work traveled with us in every conversation we had.  As we joined with other plaintiffs, we found ourselves telling and retelling their stories, carrying their hopes and joys with us.  As we talked to legislators and the media, we thought of all the couples in the state of Illinois who stood with us, who supported us.

As we sat in the chamber and watched the vote pass, we cheered, knowing that we had finally won the freedom to marry.  The vote didn't change the way my wife and I felt about each other, but it did change the way we felt about our place in our community.  As soon as we were able to marry, the ACLU offered to host our wedding at the ACLU office in Chicago with Ed Yohnka as our officiant.   In 2024, my wife and I will celebrate the 20th anniversary of our intention to be a couple.  We hold each anniversary as sacred, but to this day, the ACLU and Ed hold a special place in our hearts. 

Kathie and Lynn

I remember the Chicago Pride Parade, travelling to the Capitol in Springfield, and being interviewed by the local TV station to advocate for marriage equality. We felt the importance of the issue when we were on the front page of the local paper after going to the County Clerk's  office trying to get a license. Having a neighbor (hetero) come over and congratulate us was surprising and heartwarming.

Today, we are immersed in family goings on and are expecting our great grandson number 2 in a couple of weeks and number 3 in March. Being able to file taxes together is great. Lynn has retired and I am working half time at WILL radio. We are here for each other-older age brings physical challenges.

Rick and Tim

We look back on those days with much fondness and pride. Meeting other couples and hearing their stories showed us we weren’t alone in our hopes for equality. Did we think of ourselves as a part of history? No, we thought of ourselves and people who finally felt equal to other couples, but we knew we had to do whatever we could to get all of our stories told. We felt  a tremendous amount of support from the ACLU and we were amazed that we could be associated with such an important organization.

We celebrated 26 years together in May and proud carry the label of a “old married couple,” which is something we never dreamed of having. While the fear of losing that right is always close during the election cycle, we know we’re prepared to do what we can to remain that way. Our current household numbers us, 4 dogs, 2 cats, a pig, turtle, rabbit, turkey, goat, beta fish, 70 chickens and 2 ducks. We work in our community to continue to protect the rights of all lgbtqia+ individuals.

Find out more about our 20 years of LGBTQ+ advocacy in the Illinois Legislature

In 2023, because of the commitment of supporters and activists like you, the courage of our clients, the work of our dedicated staff, and the on the ground efforts of our partners the ACLU of Illinois continued to protect and expand civil rights and liberties.

Together we:

• Ended the use of money bond, allowing Illinois to become the first state to abolish the practice of jailing someone simply because they cannot afford the price of bond.
• Removed one of the most restrictive name change laws in the country. 
• Reinforced the protections for health care professionals and patients seeking abortion and gender affirming health care in Illinois.
• Challenged the discriminatory practice of targeting predominately Black and Latine drivers in Chicago for pretextual traffic stops.
• Fought back against efforts to limit free speech and free expression by local governments across the state.

If you are able, please make a gift today, to protect civil liberties and civil rights in Illinois and nationwide. We cannot do this work alone. Your continued support and engagement is critical to our efforts. Together, we will continue to fight to ensure “We the People” truly means all of us. 

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Find out more about the ACLU of Illinois’ work this year:

• View our Impact Reports: December | August | April

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