The two lawsuits – brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and the New York-based Lambda Legal – represent 25 couples statewide. Both challenge a state law that defines marriage as between a man and woman, arguing that the Illinois Constitution guarantees the right for same-sex couples to marry under due process and equality clauses. The filings come a year after Illinois enacted civil unions, but many couples in the lawsuits said civil unions made them feel like second-class citizens.Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D) will be joining Lambda Legal and the ACLU in arguing that Illinois's civil unions law does not meet the state's constitutional guarantees of equal protection, raising the question of what the Cook County clerk of courts -- the named defendant -- will do in its response to the lawsuits.In Illinois, however, there is no anti-LGBT amendment with a proponent to stand up for the law, and the Democrats control both chambers of the legislature. Sen. John Cullerton (D) is the Illinois Senate president, and the speaker of the Illinois House, Michael Madigan (D), is the attorney general's father http://www.metroweekly.com/poliglot/2012/06/illinois-attorney-general-to-support-lawsuits-seek.html http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/30/illinois-gay-marriage-acl_n_1555453.html
Minnesota for Marriage (MFM) said the filing today of a lawsuit in Illinois by Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) underscores the importance of Minnesota voters enacting the Marriage Protection Amendment to avoid marriage being redefined by a state judge here. “Every day that goes by without a marriage amendment in our state constitution is a day that Minnesota’s definition of marriage is in jeopardy of being redefined by an activist judge,” said Chuck Darrell, communications director for MFM. “A constitutional amendment is needed because statutes can be changed by politicians or struck down by judges at any time. Today the ACLU filed a lawsuit in Illinois. They could file one tomorrow in Minnesota. There is already a case pending in our state courts to redefine marriage. The only way to make sure that voters always control the definition of marriage in Minnesota is to enact the Marriage Protection Amendment.” Illinois Attorney General Backs Legal Challenges to Marriage Protections | NOM Blog I know there not happy about it. I guess they would like Illinois to have an anti gay amendment like North Carolina so politcians wouldn't be able to change the law. The things is the liberals control both the house and senate in Illinois so there's a slim chance there will be a bill like that in our state.
