The Advocacy Council for Human Rights

Equality Illinois will be conducting an Anti-Bullying Pledge Drive in Chicago, Springfield, and Bloomington-Normal at the end of July. We are asking Illinoisans to sign a pledge stating they will intervene when they see anti-LGBTQ harassment at school, at work, and in their neighborhoods. A major part of this drive is to inspire young adults to become more active in LGBTQ rights activism. Read more »

The McLean County AIDS Task Force will sponsor its fourth annual AIDS Walk/Run for Life at 8 a.m. on Saturday, June 25 at the Tipton Park North Pavilion in Bloomington. Read more »

The Central Illinois Safe Schools Alliance is hosting an informational open house at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 6 in room 1407 of the Community Commons Building at Heartland Community College.

The alliance (CISSA) is a local group dedicated to helping junior high and high school youth develop to their fullest potential in safe and nurturing schools that respect and honor differences.  We are growing in big ways, but we need your help! CISSA members are committed to helping lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth and their allies. To this end, they offer support to local high school gay-straight alliance groups, and also plan and host a variety of social and educational events throughout the year to foster education, understanding and social opportunities for all youth.

To do the work necessary to achieve these goals, CISSA is looking for more people to get involved in this exciting mission. The open house is for all people interested in learning more about the organization or finding ways in which they can help. We need youth and adults to keep this successful organization active in Bloomington and Normal. This Open House will be interactive and fun! Don’t miss it!

Some exciting upcoming events CISSA members are planning include a social and educational event: “A Gay Affair,” in early June for local high school students, as well as a youth panel discussion and forum this fall. We need help from students and adults alike to organize and host these events.

If you’ve been looking for a way to help support and nurture LGBT youth and their allies, please consider coming to the CISSA Open House on May 6^th to get more information. We look forward to seeing you! Please contact Suzie Hutton (huttons@district87.org) or Alyssa Mandula (amandul@ilstu.edu) for more information.

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Members of the downstate LGBT community are invited to participate in an online survey that explores the experiences of LGBT individuals in downstate Illinois.

Ramona Oswald, professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, hopes to document the quality of life for LGBT people in downstate Illinois with regards to their self-identities, families, health, work environments, and local communities. Read more »

Advocacy Council Board Members Record Videos for Civil Unions Bill – Possible Vote Nov. 30!  Advocacy Council board members Elizabeth Anvick and Suzie Hutton and their partners have recorded video segments for the Equality Illinois project “Stories from the Heartland.” Read more »

by Lee Reinhart

1st – Make a call to Senator Elect Mark Kirk and ask for his immediate support of repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.  If you’re a veteran please be sure to let the staff at Kirk’s office know that when you place the call.  Please note: you do not have to be a veteran to call, it is just important to mention it if you are.  Senator Elect Mark Kirk’s DC office number: 202.225.4835.

2nd – Once you make the call, please encourage your friends and family to call as well.  You could even post the request on your facebook to widen your reach.  It’s important as many folks as possible call Mark Kirk’s office.

3rd – You can help collect petitions that will be hand delivered to Kirk his first week in office.  I will send those out to you upon your request. 

Feel free to call me and ask me any questions.  Once you make the call, email me so I can keep record of the number of calls being made.  If you can only do one of the above it’s still very important and appreciated.

My Contact info:
Lee Reinhart
ilnavyvet@yahoo.com
773.680.0620 

The civil unions bill that has long languished in the General Assembly may be up for votes in the Senate and House the week after Thanksgiving.

The General Assembly is back in Springfield for the fall veto session and could take action on the civil unions bill as well as other legislation including the legalization of medical marijuana and expansion of gambling. Read more »

CISSA, the Central Illinois Safe Schools Alliance, has a goal this year of providing each area public high school with a School Safety Kit to promote anti-bullying techniques. In light of the recent suicides of teens and young adults who have been bullied because of sexual orientation, CISSA members are more determined than ever to do what they can to ensure that every high school student in Bloomington-Normal feels safe in their school. Read more »

The Acorn Equality Fund www.acornequalityfund.com will award scholarships to LGBT and LGBT-supportive high school and college students at its annual breakfast at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 4 at the Embassy Suites Conference Center in East Peoria.

Acorn Equality Fund provides opportunities for scholarships and grants to Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender (GLBT) persons, organizations and allies in Illinois’ downstate counties. Over $20,000 in scholarship money will be awarded at this year’s breakfast.

Tickets to the breakfast are $25. The Advocacy Council is putting together a table so if you are interested in sitting with us please e-mail Dave at davebent62@hotmail.com.