PFLAG DuPage

10/15/2026

We're at Benedictine University today in Lisle, taking part in the Purple Thursday domestic violence awareness resource fair. Members of the LGBTQ+ community are just as likely - if not more so - to experience domestic violence than the cisgender & heterosexual community. Thanks to Benedictine University and Metropolitan Family Services for organizing the event.

Read more:
Family Shelter Service of Metropolitan Family Services DuPage: https://www.metrofamily.org/fssofmfsd/
Human Rights Campaign: https://www.hrc.org/resources/understanding-intimate-partner-violence-in-the-lgbtq-community
National Network to End Domestic Violence: https://nnedv.org/

10/14/2026

https://facebook.com/events/s/restaurant-fundraiser-at-the-v/1101654732729815/

Today, the Pride Alliance at College of DuPage is having a fundraiser at The Village Tavern & Grill of Carol Stream. As part of Village Tavern's "Eat Out 2 Help Out" program, there are two ways to help and support the Pride Alliance's efforts to raise funds. Visit the restaurant the day of the event and show your server this invitation - PRINT IT OUT.

If you cannot make the event, you can purchase gift cards online anytime during the day of the event and we will get a 20% donation of your purchase. It's an all-day event, so you can come for lunch, dinner or both. You can bring your business colleagues from work for lunch and then the family for dinner!

Make sure you bring a flyer to each visit! This flyer must be turned into your server at the time of payment alone with a copy of your bill in order to receive credit for the donation. Once you've left the building, you may not return with a flyer to apply to a bill.

Location: The Village Tavern & Grill of Carol Stream, 291 South Schmale Rd., Carol Stream, IL

10/13/2026

The midterm elections are just 3 weeks from today! You have until Sunday, 10/18 11:59PM to register to vote online - do so here: https://ova.elections.il.gov/

Whether you vote by mail or in person, on your own or with a group, casting your ballot is a powerful way of turning Pride into power. Visit https://pflag.org/we-vote/ and https://www.vote411.org/pflag (in partnership with League of Women Voters of the US) for non-partisan resources and toolkits to help you, your friends and family, and your community fill out or check voter registration, find polling places, and find out what’s on the ballot.

Locally in DuPage county, the following LWV chapters are available:
League of Women Voters of Downers Grove, Woodridge and Lisle
League of Women Voters of Elmhurst, IL
League of Women Voters of Glen Ellyn
League of Women Voters Naperville
League of Women Voters of Roselle / Bloomingdale
League of Women Voters of Wheaton, Illinois

10/12/2026

Our friends in EQuality Downers Grove are hosting 2 nights of "The Laramie Project" - Friday, Oct. 16 & Saturday, Oct. 17. The play provides a deeply complex portrait of a community’s response to the horrific 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a young gay man living in Laramie, Wyoming.

Admission is FREE (tickets required) and will be held at First United Methodist Church, 1032 Maple Ave, Downers Grove. This intimate setting is intended to create greater impact.
Oct. 16 tickets: https://www.eqdg.org/event-details-registration/the-laramie-project-oct-16-2026-10-16-19-30
Oct. 17 tickets: https://www.eqdg.org/event-details-registration/the-laramie-project-oct-17-2026-10-17-19-30

10/11/2026

Today is National Coming Out Day! 🌈 Chosen for the anniversary of the 1987 Second National March on Washington for Gay and Le***an Rights, we celebrate the courage it takes to live as your authentic self. Whether you choose to come out today, aren't ready to, or aren't able to for whichever reason, PFLAG supports you, fights for you, and is here for you. We are also here for your loved ones.

You can find resources for someone coming out to you AND as someone coming out here: https://pflag.org/find-resources . PFLAG DuPage's next chapter meeting will be a week from today - 10/18 at 1 PM in Wheaton and on Zoom. Contact info[at]pflagdupage.org for location information.

If you're looking to celebrate, EQuality Downers Grove is hosting a Tea Dance at Skeleton Key Brewing from 6-9 in Woodridge. 13+ welcome. Register here: https://www.eqdg.org/event-details-registration/2026-eqdg-tea-dance-1

Belong: Fox Valley is also hosting a celebration & storytelling event tonight from 6:30-9 at Riverlands Brewing in St. Charles. 13+ welcome. More info: https://www.belongfoxvalley.org/post/coming-out-day-celebration

10/10/2026

Pride-O-Ween is this Saturday!
Join us on Saturday, October 10th from Noon to 6 PM (and beyond for our After Hours event!).

Come out to support local craft vendors, grab some incredible food truck eats, win some awesome prizes, and enjoy top-tier live entertainment.

Saturday, October 10
Noon - 6 PM (Plus After Hours fun!)
Bott Park (24550 W. Renwick Road)
Entry - Free ($10 Suggested Donation)

https://www.plainfieldpride.org/events-schedule-2026

Don't miss the ultimate mashup of Pride and Halloween. See you at Bott Park!

Volunteer sign-up at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0848A5AF2CA7FFC34-65838444-prideoween

Tag the crew you're bringing in the comments below!

10/09/2026

The 2026 Power of PFLAG Conference is tomorrow! We hope to see you there! It's shaping up to be a wonderful day of learning and community-building with members from 18 northern Illinois PFLAG chapters as well as a number of community partners.

If you aren't attending the conference and are looking for something fun, Plainfield Pride is hosting the final Chicago-area Pride Fest of 2026 tomorrow from 12-6! There's family activities, local vendors & resources, live music, and drag! Check the schedule and show them some love: https://www.plainfieldpride.org/events-schedule-2026

10/08/2026

❤️🧡 🤍 🩷 💜

To our le***an loved ones across the gender and sexuality spectrum: You are loved, you are valid, and you are valued members of our communities. Happy International Le***an Day! ❤️🧡🤍💗💜

10/06/2026

Want to help make sure young voters have the information they need to cast their ballots this election season? Join PFLAG National & the League of Women Voters for a virtual text bank – tomorrow at 5PM CT! 🗳️📱 Help reach voters with trusted, nonpartisan election information.

No text bank experience is necessary! We’ll provide the training, tools, and support you need to jump in.

Register today at https://pflagnation.al/LWV-TextBank

10/05/2026

Did you know? Chicago was home to the earliest chartered gay rights organization in America. Founded in 1924 by Henry Ge**er, the Society for Human Rights was the first LGBTQ+ organization nationwide to receive a state charter. It also produced the first gay-interest publication, "Friendship and Freedom." The Society was strictly for gay men - excluding bisexuals and all women.

The Society was short-lived, as only a few months after being chartered, Ge**er and other members were arrested on obscenity charges, and the legal fees bankrupted Ge**er. All gay-interest publications were deemed "obscene" under the Comstock Act until a 1958 Supreme Court decision.

Ge**er's legacy lives on in pioneering for other LGBTQ+ rights and advocacy organizations, and the Ge**er Hart Library and Archives (named in honor of Henry Ge**er and Pearl Hart, a public defender of gay men among others in Chicago's Morals Court) is located at Howard Brown Health at 6500 N. Clark St. in Chicago.

Find more resources about the Society for Human Rights at The Legacy Project - https://legacyprojectchicago.org/milestone/society-human-rights

The First LGBT Rights Organization in the United States