Press Release

from www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org and State Representative Greg Harris
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 1, 2008

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
State Rep. Greg Harris
(217) 782-3835
Greg@GregHarris.org

Chris Jessup, Co-Founder, www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org
(312) 388-1941
Chris@CivilUnionsIllinois.org

Illinois students celebrate launch of new online advocacy effort (www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org) to pass civil unions bill; generate first 1000 letters to Illinois legislature.

CHICAGO – Illinois students today celebrated the launch of www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org, a grassroots effort of students who came together through social networking sites like facebook.com to support State Representative Greg Harris’ historic civil unions legislation.

“Illinois students who care about fairness and equality for every family in our state came together, on their own, to voice support for civil unions online,” said www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org co-Founder and DePaul junior Chris Jessup. “We’re thrilled that our new website is now serving as a vehicle to bring new voices into the political process and support this critical legislation.”

Jessup, Lake Forest College Sophomore Phil Miatkowski and youth organizer Nick Rutan helped launch the Illinois student movement in support of civil unions by inviting friends to an online group on the social networking site www.facebook.com, which allows participants to communicate with those who have similar interests. Over 8,000 people joined their facebook group. The students then worked with State Representative Harris to launch www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org which enables Illinois residents to send a free, instant message to their legislators in support of House Bill 1826, the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act.

“Students sometimes think their voices can’t make a difference. But our experience supporting civil unions shows that young people are having a tremendous impact,” said Miatkowski. “Over 1,000 letters have been sent to legislators from their young constituents as a result of our launching www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org.”

Group moderator Nick Rutan noted that www.CivilUnionsIllinois.org is reaching all regions of the state, both online and offline. “We are working with student leaders from downstate schools like Southern Illinois University, Chicago schools like Loyola University, and everywhere in between.” said Rutan, who is also a youth organizer with the ACLU of Illinois. “Legislators from districts throughout Illinois – rural, urban and suburban - are receiving letters from their young constituents. People are moved by stories on our website of real families throughout the state who are harmed because Illinois does not permit civil unions.”

“Many people do not know that opposite-sex, same-sex and senior couples in Illinois can be denied the basic rights to make emergency health care decisions for their partners, to visit their partners in hospitals, to share a nursing home room, or even to make funeral arrangements after a partner passes away,” said State Representative Harris. “This is wrong. And I commend Chris, Phil, Nick and other young people of this state for bringing so many new voices to the movement for change. Students are leading the way in urging our state to provide basic rights to all committed couples.”

The Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act, House Bill 1826, helps establish basic fairness by extending state-level legal protections and responsibilities of marriage to all committed couples in Illinois. Under the Act, civil unions would be open to all adult couples (including opposite-sex, same-sex and senior couples) and afford these couples the state-level protections and responsibilities essential to all families. The legislation also preserves the separation of church and state and ensures that religious denominations are not forced to recognize or sanctify relationships if they are not within their faith or tradition.