Victory has been achieved in Illinois, as it becomes the 15th state to pass marriage equality

Yesterday, as the SB10 bill was passed in the House 61-54-2-1 and then subsequently passed the Senate 32-21-0-6, Illinois became the 15th state (plus DC) to pass marriage equality.


It was a very good day for us Illinois who believed in fairness and equality, and a very bad day for the homophobes such as the Illinois Family Institute who lobbied against it.

USNews.NBCNews.com:

The Illinois General Assembly approved a bill on Tuesday to allow gays and lesbians to marry in the Land of Lincoln, opening the path for the state to become the 15th to allow same-sex marriage. 

The vote capped a months-long wait for a ballot on the measure while gay marriage advocates worked on getting the support needed to pass the legislation. The House of Representatives, where the bill stalled earlier this year after the Senate passed it, approved the legislation, 61-54.  

“Today, the Illinois House put our state on the right side of history,” said Gov. Pat Quinn, who has long vowed to sign the legislation.  The measure had to return to the Senate since the House added an amendment to make June 1 the effective date of the legislation — rather than 30 days after Quinn signs it. The Senate quickly endorsed the bill after the House vote.

After the ballot, the White House tweeted: "RT if you agree that every American should have the freedom to marry who they love."

Illinois is poised to become the 15th state nationwide to allow same-sex marriage and join two of its Midwest neighbors – Iowa and Minnesota – in granting gay couples the right to wed. The District of Columbia allows gay marriage, too.
The vote comes two weeks after same-sex marriages began in New Jersey, where the state dropped its legal appeal to prohibit the weddings, and comes ahead of a similar ballot in Hawaii.
Rep. Greg Harris, a primary sponsor of the bill from Chicago who is openly gay, announced last May that he wouldn't call a vote on the legislation since he wasn’t sure it had enough support for approval, The Advocate reported. 

[...] 

 Couples who had previously joined in civil unions, which were approved in the state 2010 and began in mid-2011, will be able to have that legal relationship converted into marriage. They have one year to make the change, and typical marriage fees will be waived, according to the legislation.

I am so happy about this!