Lambda Legal's 2011 Bon Foster Civil Rights Celebration to Introduce Camilla Taylor as National Marriage Project Director
(Chicago, IL, April 21, 2011) — On April 28, 2011, Lambda Legal's Bon Foster Civil Right Celebration will introduce Camilla Taylor as National Marriage Project Director. The introduction is in addition to special guest Zach Wahls, a University of Iowa student who received national attention after speaking against an amendment to repeal marriage equality in the Iowa House of Representatives.
The Robert Bonvoulior "Bon" Foster Celebration, now in its 18th year, honors the late civil rights activist and attorney whose generosity aided in the creation of Lambda Legal's Midwest Regional Office. Launched as the Bon Foster Memorial Lecture Series in 1994, the event has steadily grown to become Lambda Legal's major fundraising event in Chicago, attracting nearly 500 attendees in 2010. The event honors the memory of Bon Foster with a focus on Lambda Legal's ground breaking civil rights work.
Based in Chicago, Camilla Taylor was lead counsel in Lambda Legal's marriage equality lawsuit in Iowa, Varnum v. Brien, in which the Iowa Supreme Court, struck down Iowa's marriage ban in April 2009, making it the third state in the country to permit gay and lesbian couples to marry. Recently promoted to National Marriage Project Director, Camilla Taylor will lead the organization's work to win respect for same-sex couples and their families across the country.
Zach Wahls, recently featured on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, is the 19 year old son of two lesbian mothers whose emotionally moving appeal to the House of Representatives as it considered a vote to ban marriage equality in Iowa surpassed 2 million views on YouTube.
Past Bon Foster guests include civil rights activist Coretta Scott King (1998), tennis legend Billie Jean King (1999), Judge Abner Mikva (2001) and Obama White House Official Tina Tchen (2010).
Who: Camilla Taylor, National Marriage Project Director http://www.lambdalegal.org/about-us/staff/camilla-taylor.html
Zach Wahls, a University of Iowa Student who received national attention after speaking
against an amendment to repeal marriage equality in the Iowa House of Representatives.
What: Lambda Legal's 18th annual Bon Foster Civil Rights Celebration, an evening honoring the memory of Robert "Bon" Foster, the late attorney activist whose bequest made possible the founding of Lambda Legal's Chicago office in 1993.
When: April 28, 2011, 5:30 PM — 9:30 PM
Where: Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies
610 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60605
RSVP: Tickets available at www.lambdalegal.org/bonfoster or contact Jeff Souva, 312-663-4413 ext.335 or jsouva@lambdalegal.org for reservations or sponsorship opportunities.