News & Commentary

The Pantagraph reports that the ACLU has gone to court in Colorado against a wedding vendor who refused to do business with a gay couple planning their post nuptial party. Colorado allows Civil Unions, yet, David Mullins and Charlie Craig were turned away when they tried to place an order for a wedding cake at the Masterpiece Cakeshop in suburban Denver with the owner claiming a conflict with his own religious beliefs. The ACLU of Illinois is representing a couple from Mattoon, Illinois before the Illinois Human Rights Commission. The couple was turned away by two bed & breakfast facilities because they were gay.

The Chicago Tribune wrote about a Woodstock police officer who used a law enforcement database to obtain private information about his girlfriend, and allegedly sent sexually inappropriate text messages to her 12 year old daughter. The Tribune spoke with ACLU of Illinois' Communications and Public Policy Director Ed Yohnka about this serious invasion of privacy.

The Chicago Tribune reports that passage of the Illinois Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act, which does not go into effect until next June, could have been a case of equality delayed for Vernita Gray, who is battling terminal cancer and whose life expectancy may mean she will die before being able to marry her partner Patricia Ewert.

The State Journal-Register has a story about upcoming free speech activity in the capitol building in Springfield. A series of displays from various religious, non-religious and advocacy groups will be exhibited in the rotunda and will last through the holiday season. The Register spoke with ACLU of Illinois Springfield chapter president Donald Hanrahan about the plans for an ACLU display in the building:

The stories have been tragic. A series of reports in Chicago media have reported on a number of deaths of children, children who have had previous contact with Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).

It is almost impossible to capture the sense of celebration and joy that was present yesterday when Governor Pat Quinn signed into law Senate Bill 10, making Illinois the 16th state to recognize the freedom to marry. Perhaps no line better captured the spirit of the moment than one uttered by Illinois' Lt. Governor Sheila Simon: "It is time to stop planning rallies and start planning weddings!"

A Chicago Sun-Times editorial questions whether or not Orland Park Public Libraries should block and filter pornographic websites from library computers. Unfortunately, filters and blocks consequentially end up blocking legitimate science and research sites that have nothing to do with porn. The American Library Association argues that censorship cripples the very purpose of a library’s existence which is to “provide information and enlightenment.” The ACLU of Illinois has long fought against censorship in libraries:

ACLU of Illinois Associate Legal Director Ben Wolf appeared on WBEZ to discuss the recent news of an increased number of child deaths due to abuse and neglect in children who have had previous contact with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).  For more than two decades, the ACLU of Illinois has been working to reform the child welfare system in Illinois, through a consent decree overseen by a federal court that has led to substantial changes to DCFS. Listen to the segment below:

Grammy Award-winning jazz bassist, composer, and singer Esperanza Spalding today released We Are America, a new music video highlighting the injustice of prolonged indefinite detention at the prison at Guantánamo Bay. She discusses her motivations for the project below.