From a Press Release:
Chicago, IL - Sunday, October 11th, 2009 - LGBT Change, a Chicago grassroots initiative, announces the list of speakers for the Chicago Solidarity Rally for the National Equality March, to be held on October 11 at 1:00pm in Daley Plaza. "It's really important for those who care about fairness and equality to stand up in Chicago or Washington D.C.," State Representative Greg Harris said.
The National Equality March and the Chicago Rally symbolize our historic progress as a minority group. It will be held in the thirtieth year anniversary of the first gay and lesbian rally in Washington D.C., and coincides with National Coming Out Day. It is not the intention of the March or the Chicago rally to lobby our representatives in the halls of Government, but instead we seek to reinvigorate our community and gather momentum around the idea of pursuing a national strategy in addition to the state-by-state strategy that has been pursued thus far.
The eight confirmed speakers at the rally reflect the diversity that is inherent in the Chicago LGBTQA community. The speakers will address the LGBTQA movement for equality through their own perspectives and experiences. "The LGBT community is a microcosm of the patchwork of America," said Kim Hunt, Executive Director for Affinity Community Services. "Affinity Community Services is proudly participating in the Chicago Rally because it's important for people to understand that, first and foremost, this is a fight for basic civil rights."
"Speaking out for fairness is crucial to our work in the courts and legislatures, and recent events have shown again that we'll have to fight to hold onto any and every small gain we make," said John Knight, Director of the ACLU of Illinois Lesbian and Gay Rights/AIDS Project. "We must continue to tell the stories of the discrimination we live with at school and work, and talk about the complete denial of legal protections for our families in most parts of this country."
The list of confirmed speakers follows:
- Representative Greg Harris, Illinois State Representative
- John A. Knight, Director of the ACLU of Illinois Lesbian and Gay Rights/AIDS Project
- Kim Hunt, Executive Director of Affinity Community Services
- Jim Madigan, Candidate for Illinois State Senate
- Peter Ji, President of PFLAG Illinois
- Jim Pickett, Director of Public Policy for AIDS Foundation of Chicago
- Gerald Farinas, Candidate for Alderman, 46th Ward
- Representative from Illinois Gender Advocates
"Democrats control all branches of government, but they aren't producing results for our community. Join this rally to show our leaders that we want results not more talk," states Jim Madigan, Candidate for State Senate. LGBT Change is calling on LGBTQA of every race, class, faith, and from every community to come together here in Chicago to show your support for the National Equality March and make just one simple demand: Federal protection against LGBT inequities in all 50 states.
About LGBT Change
Through action-oriented events and inter-generational dialogue, LGBT Change examines the core issues facing our community in order to channel those priorities to our leaders. This grassroots initiative focuses on capturing anyone voicing the ideas that continue to activate change in the LGBT community. For more information visit http://www.lgbtchange.org/
