Pride Month is a celebration of the many contributions made by the LGBTQ+ community to society and history as well as a reinvigoration of advocacy and efforts towards equality. Pride is celebrated throughout the month of June each year in commemoration of its roots in the Stonewall Riots of June 1969. The Stonewall Riots occurred when the NYPD raided Stonewall Inn, a gay club located in Greenwich Village in New York City. This raid sparked days of riots and violent clashes with police. This event is considered a catalyst for the gay rights movement in the United States and across the world. In the 1960s, it was illegal to engage in “gay behavior” in public and until 1966, the New York State Liquor Authority penalized and shut down establishments that served alcohol to known or suspected LGBT individuals. Read more about Stonewall and history of the gay rights movement here.
To commemorate Pride Month in 2023, PILI wants to recognize some of our Participating Agencies – those organizations at which we place our Law Student Interns & Graduate Fellows – that fight for equal rights for the LGBTQ+ community. Each one of these organizations is integral to the fight for equity across Illinois as well as the country. While Illinois legislature may not be actively promoting anti-LGBTQ+ legislation as in other parts of the country, the fight for equality and acceptance is ongoing everywhere. Pride is a symbol of hope, solidarity, and pride for the LGBTQ+ community and its allies.
ACLU of Illinois works to fight mass incarceration and racism in the criminal and juvenile legal systems, to promote full equality for LGBTQ people, to challenge dangerous immigration detention conditions, to battle racially biased and abusive policing, to advance gender justice and reproductive rights, to advocate for children in the foster system and people with disabilities, and to defend people from government abuse and overreach. Learn more about ACLU Illinois here.
National Immigrant Justice Center is a program of Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights that is dedicated to ensuring human rights protections and access to justice for all immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers. NIJC’s LGBTQ Immigrant Rights Initiative provides legal services to low-income immigrants who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) and those who are living with HIV. Learn more about the National Immigrant Justice Center here.
Chicago House’s TransLegal program provides direct legal services to transgender and gender expansive individuals and is part of the TransLife Care Program, which provides comprehensive programming and support to people in those communities. Chicago House has been supporting individuals and families impacted by HIV since 1985 with housing, health, and employment services. Learn more about Chicago House here.
Lambda Legal has worked to address the highest priority needs for members of the LGBTQ+ community and those living with HIV for over 50 years. Lamda Legal does this through impact litigation, education programs and public policy advocacy. Lambda Legal has helped to effect dramatic social change through historic courtroom victories and policy work over the years, including landmark cases such as Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), which made gay marriage federally legal. Read more about Lambda Legal’s work here.
Legal Council for Health Justice was founded as AIDS Legal Council of Chicago in 1987 in response to the unique and urgent legal needs among people diagnosed with HIV, the agency broadened its focus beyond single-disease advocacy and changed its name to Legal Council for Health Justice in 2014. Legal Council for Health Justice uses the power of the law to secure dignity, opportunity, and well-being for people facing barriers due to illness or disability. Learn more about the Legal Council for Health Justice here.