Chicago Gender Identity Amendment One Step Closer to Passage

Today, more than seven years of hard work on the part of Illinois Gender Advocates (formerly It's Time, Illinois) finally began to pay off as the Chicago Gender Identity Amendment cleared its next to the last hurdle by passing the Chicago Human Relations Committee with a unanimous vote.


Alderman Gene Schulter, one of the lead sponsors, spoke highly of the ordinance, noting the many people in his ward who had come to speak to him about the ordinance. "It means fairness... it is people living together and sharing in the community," he said.

Alderman Mary Ann Smith, another of the lead sponsors, also spoke in favor of the ordinance saying, "I am just sorry it took so long to get to this."

Those invited to testify before the committee included Bill Greaves, Director of the Advisory Council on Gay and Lesbian Issues (ACGLI), Catherine Sikora, member of ACGLI, and Lorrainne Sade Baskerville, Director of TransGenesis.

From documenting the need for the ordinance through annual reports on discrimination, to lining up and working with the lead sponsors on the draft of the ordinance, to grassroots organizing and training of the community members, to initiating a highly successful letter-writing campaign, to working closely with the Chicago Human Relations Commission and stakeholders on the language of the ordinance, Illinois Gender Advocates has been there every step of the way.

Miranda Stevens-Miller
Political Director
Illinois Gender Advocates