Equality Illinois

05/29/2026

Alright everyone!!!!! We’re getting closer!!!! Join us next Sunday for our annual Pride Brunch.

I am so excited and looking forward to seeing you!

Let’s celebrate together as we kickoff our PRIDE month!😊

Ticket link below.

-CLP

2026 Pride Kick-off Brunch Sunday, June 7, 2026 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM Venue West, Chicago, IL Event SponsorsBecome a sponsor and stand with us in celebrating love, equality, and inclusion. Sponsorship Join us!Celebrate Pride with us! Let’s come together to uplift, honor, and celebrate the LGBTQ+....

05/18/2026

Who doesn’t love brunch!?!?!?

Join us at the 2026 Pride Kickoff Brunch of June 7,2026 at Venue West! Buy your tickets here: equalityillinois.us/2026-pride-kickoff-brunch/

05/14/2026

Last month Taskforce Prevention & Community Services an LGBTQ+ Townhall to discuss the issues affecting our community on the West side of Chicago! Thank you State Senator Lakesia Collins for participating, always showing up and standing firm on protecting your LGBTQ+ constituents.

05/07/2026

Six months in, and the work is clearer than ever: build stronger systems, respond in real time, and make sure LGBTQ+ Illinoisans—no matter where they live—are seen, protected, and heard.

From Pekin to Peoria, Carbondale to Rockford, this movement belongs to all of us. And right now, it needs all of us.

We’re facing real pressure—but we’re still showing up. And we’re asking you to do the same.

➡️ Join our Capitol Club
➡️ Show up for Advocacy Day on May 21, 2026
➡️ Use your voice. Share. Speak. Act.

Scan the QR code or click the link to read my full statement: https://www.equalityillinois.us/from-the-desk-of-the-ceo-5-5-26/

Because no movement moves without its people.

Equality Illinois has always been worth showing up for. It still is. Join us.

05/05/2026

The Senate Executive Committee has scheduled HB 5095 for a committee hearing this week. HB 5095 will ensure that the Illinois Secretary of State’s current self-attestation process for gender marker corrections on driver’s licenses is established in state law. This bill will further guarantee that the Illinois Secretary of State’s self-reported gender marker information remains confidential, similar to medical records, and can only be released by court order. This bill is necessary to keep our community safe amid the continued attacks on trans and gender-diverse people.

Submit a witness slip supporting this. The deadline is 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 6.

https://ilga.gov/Senate/hearings/details/3072/22962/CreateWitnessSlip/?legislationId=166639&GaId=18&View=Create&nvep=&hmac=&emci=725112f7-9548-f111-8ef2-000d3a14b640&emdi=ea000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000001&ceid=

05/03/2026

From our CEO, Channyn Lynne Parker:

Peoria Proud, thank you.

Today I came to listen. To sit with your concerns. To share space. To witness what you are building in central Illinois.

What I heard was real. The fear is real. The exhaustion is real. The questions about what comes next are real.

But here is what else I heard. Hope. Quiet, stubborn, unmistakable hope. The kind that shows up to a community room on a Saturday afternoon, and still stands shoulder to shoulder, and refuses to disappear.

You reminded me why this work matters. You reminded me that Equality Illinois belongs to every county, every community, every person who has ever wondered if they have a place in this state.

With deep gratitude.

- CLP

05/01/2026

Progress is under attack!

Read our full statement below.

https://www.equalityillinois.us/5-1-26-department-of-justice-opened-civil-rights-investigations/

04/30/2026

“The Court has spoken. So have we. I dissent. Equality Illinois dissents. Illinois dissents.”

We will always stand for democracy, fairness, and the right of every community to be heard. The work continues.

Read our full statement here: https://www.equalityillinois.us/2026/04/clp-i-dissent-statment/

04/28/2026

04/28/2026

🌈 Big news at Equality Illinois!

We’re thrilled to welcome three incredible new leaders to our team:

✨ Alma Rosa Aguila, Senior Director of Development and External Relations
✨ Kylan L. Durant, Senior Director of Strategic Operations
✨ Aces Lira, Director of Public Policy

Their experience, passion, and commitment to LGBTQ+ equality will help lead our next chapter of impact across Illinois.

Visit the link below to learn more about our newest team members and the important work ahead: https://www.equalityillinois.us/ei-is-growing/