CHICAGO (AP) — Over the past 10 years, Lakeesha Harris and Janean Watkins have built a life together, with six children and a home. But they said they always felt relegated to second-class status. Until Wednesday.
The Chicago couple arrived at the Cook County
building downtown at midnight to be the first in line as Illinois' new civil
unions law took effect, allowing gay and lesbian couples to obtain civil union
licenses.
"We've been ostracized and relegated to the
bottom rung of society. I feel like this is some sort of justice for us, for
our family," said Harris, 36. "I'm so grateful. I'm thankful. There
are so many things going through my mind right now."
Civil unions give couples many of the rights that
accompany traditional marriage. That includes the power to decide medical
treatment for an ailing partner and the right to inherit a partner's property.
Hundreds of couples around Illinois lined up early
for the chance to get civil union licenses, including five couples in line in
southwestern Illinois' St. Clair County when the clerk's office opened at 8:30
a.m.
Cook County's vital records office opened early, at
7:30 a.m., and will stay open until 7 p.m. to accommodate couples. Officials
said they expect to give out about 2,000 licenses in the first day.
The first civil union ceremonies can't take place
until Thursday, when dozens of couples are expected to participate in a
ceremony at Chicago's Millennium Park.
Copyright
2011 The Associated Press.
(AP
Photo/M. Spencer Green)
