Illinois
Equality Illinois' Chicago gala honors activist who led charge to legalize same-sex marriage in 2015
CHICAGO (WLS) — Equality Illinois’ annual gala is being held Saturday evening at the Hilton Chicago downtown.
This year marks 10 years since same-sex marriage was legalized in the United States.
Equality Illinois celebrated that milestone, but with a new White House administration, advocates said they are concerned that LGBTQ+ rights are under fire.
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Equality Illinois fights for the civil rights of LGBTQ+ people.
At Saturday’s gala, the group honored the person who led the charge 10 years ago to legalize same-sex marriage in the U.S., Jim Obergefell, the lead plaintiff in a U.S. Supreme Court case.
While it’s considered a triumph, LGBTQ+ advocates said their fight is not over.
We have to keep fighting, otherwise marriage and so much of the progress that we have made in our nation for civil rights will disappear.
Jim Obergefell, LGBTQ+ activist
“For us, it’s a reminder that we have a solid foundation of victories upon which to build,” Equality Illinois CEO Brian C. Johnson said. “It is good for queer folks that these rights remain stable.”
Under the music and chandeliers was a feeling that rings louder than the silent auction that began the evening’s gala.
“We will hold on to our rights, and we’re going to resist and fight back against any institution; be it a hospital, a school, a workplace, an employer, who tries to comply in advance with these terrible executive orders coming down,” Johnson said.
It was June 26, 2015 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that all states must grant and recognize same-sex marriages.
“My late husband, John, and I – we wanted to exist,” Obergefell said.
That fight was led by Obergefell after he sued Ohio for the state to recognize his marriage.
SEE ALSO | LGBTQ+ group rallies at UI Health after Trump administration sued over transgender care order
“We have to keep fighting, otherwise marriage and so much of the progress that we have made in our nation for civil rights will disappear,” Obergefell said.
Those efforts that led to a Supreme Court victory were honored at a sold-out gala Saturday, with local and state leaders in attendance.
“The threats to all those gains are very, very real,” said Rep. Mike Quigley, (D) IL 5th District. “And, somehow, during the last campaign, the LGBT community has become the scapegoat, particularly the trans community.”
While the hundreds of attendees enjoyed the revelry and accomplishments, LGBTQ+ supporters say their fight must continue.
“We’re going to stop at nothing until LGBTQ-plus people are fully equal, fully safe, and fully affirmed under the law,” Johnson said.
“We are much more alike than we are different.” Obergefell said.
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CENTRALIA, Ill. – An investigation is underway after multiple people were shot Sunday in Centralia, Illinois, according to a report from WFCN News in southern Illinois.
FOX 2 has confirmed the Illinois State Police is investigating a shooting and taking over the investigation, but ISP could not confirm many further details as of 9 p.m. Sunday.
“The investigation is in its infancy and to protect the integrity of the investigation, no additional details will be released at this time,” ISP said in a statement to FOX 2.
According to WFCN News, the shooting happened around 5 p.m. near the 900 block of East Kell Street in Centralia. Multiple law enforcement agencies have since responded to scene and multiple victims are hospitalized, according to the report.
It’s unclear how many people may have been injured and what led up to the shooting.
Centralia, Illinois is about 70 miles, or just over an hour, east of St. Louis.
This is a developing story. FOX 2 will update as more information becomes available.
The National Weather Service has teams of storm surveryors in the field April 18 investigating several reports of severe storms and tornado touch downs across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and northeast Missouri.
According to the weather service’s website, windgusts of up to 60 to 70 mph along with teacup-sized hail and several tornadoes were reported April 17.
Many homes and outbuildings were damaged, trees were uprooted and power lines were downed in Lena, Illinois, where the most significant damage occurred, the site pointed out.
Very strong winds also were reported near Washington, Iowa, and Colmar, Illinois, where several outbuildings and grain bins were destroyed.
The weather service received reports of confirmed and possible tornadoes in the areas of Lena, Pecatonica, Shirland, Rockton, Roscoe and Capron.
The teams will be assessing damage this weekend into next week along with county emergency management teams to determine what types of storms occurred and their paths.
Dozens of power outages were reported, as well.
As of the afternoon of April 18, ComEd was reporting 85 active power outages across northern Illinois, down from 241 on April 17, and 6,751 customers affected, down from more than 18,000.
The bulk of those outages and the most customers impacted are concentrated in Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties.
Freeze Watch
from MON 12:00 AM CDT until MON 9:00 AM CDT, Lake County, Kankakee County, La Salle County, DuPage County, Northern Will County, DeKalb County, Southern Will County, Kendall County, Southern Cook County, Northern Cook County, Grundy County, Eastern Will County, Kane County, McHenry County, Lake County, Newton County, Jasper County, Porter County
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