Land of Lincoln Approves Gay Marriage Bill

By Victoria Vail

On November 20, 2013 Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed the bill allowing gay marriage in Illinois.  He did so on the same desk that Abraham Lincoln used to write his first inaugural address on.  Quinn said, “Love never fails and I’m going to sign this bill right now.”  The bill changes the definition of marriage in Illinois to refer not to marriage between man and woman but between two people.  Furthermore, it also prevents religious groups from being forced to wed gay couples; however, faith-based organizations can be required to offer health insurance to a gay employee’s spouse.  Those not in favor of gay marriage argue that the bill has little protection for photographers, bakers, or other wedding services and their decision on the matter.  Nonetheless, many in Illinois remain proud of the governor’s signing of the bill.

            This moment has long been anticpated by many. Illinois came close to passing a gay rights bill in 2005, and in 2011 Quinn managed to signa civil unions measure into law.  The gay community had their hopes built up for years to be let down before getting the rights they wanted.  The bill required 60 votes to be passed instead of the supermajority, 71.  The law will go into effect June 1, 2014.  While the bill comes with much excitement, the gap in enforcement will create many tired sighs.  Still, many argue that the public shift in support for gay marriage over the past few years was a contributing factor in the passing of the bill.  The country has made steady strides the past few years in support of gay marriage.

            President Obama reacted to the passage of gay marriage in Illinois positively: "Michelle and I are overjoyed for all the committed couples in Illinois whose love will now be as legal as ours — and for their friends and family who have long wanted nothing more than to see their loved ones treated fairly and equally under the law.”  Support from the Supreme Court ultimately helped get the bill moving after it was stagnated during a lame-duck session in Illinois government.  This past May the US Supreme Court ruled that the definition of marriage was not just man and woman.  This was definitely a positive ruling, however, gay couples throughout the United States were not viewed equally in each state.  Gay couples in states that recognized gay marriage held more rights than those in states that did not recognize gay marriage.  Many advocates for gay marriage in Illinois used this inequality to lobby lawmakers by arguing that they could easily move across states to Iowa which allowed gay marriage.

            A month after the Supreme Court’s ruling, Pope Francis spoke out about gay marriage.  He said, “If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?”  This surged many Catholic lawmakers to find solace with the Pope and help them come to a conclusion.  "As a Catholic follower of Jesus and the pope, Pope Francis, I am clear that our Catholic religious doctrine has at its core love, compassion and justice for all people,"            Republican Linda Chapa LaVia said after voting to pass the Illinois bill into effect.

Works Cited:

Garcia, Monique, and Ray Long. "Illinois lawmakers approve gay marriage in historic vote." Chicago Tribune (blog), November 06, 2013. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-11-06/news/ct-met-gay-marriage-illinois-1106-20131106_1_illinois-senate-gay-marriage-gay-lawmakers (accessed November 26, 2013).