The Daily Herald covered Friday's hearing in the two marriage cases being managed by the ACLU of Illinois and Lambda Legal on behalf of a total of 25 couples seeking the freedom to marry in Illinois. Judge Sophia Hall threw out a motion to dismiss the case filed by same-sex marriage opponents. Friday's decision in the hearing allows the cases to move forward to hear the couple's arguments about how the denial of the freedom to marry harms them.
"Marriage is the standard in terms of how you define relationships in the U.S.," said 44-year-old Suzie Hutton, a plaintiff who now is in a civil union with her partner of 11 years, Danielle Cook. "It means something, and we want to be able to say we are married. It's about being with the one you love, the one who supports you and the one you go through the routine of life with."
