Same-sex marriage group: 3,000 expected at signing

The Illinois Unites for Marriage Coalition, which was behind the efforts to change state law allowing same-sex couples to legally marry, said some 3,000 people are expected at Wednesday’s bill signing event.

The number seems to be growing by the day.

Though they’re not surprising to Bernard Cherkasov of Equality Illinois.

“It’s an emotional victory,” he told the Sun-Times in an interview. “We have spoken to so many couples who have been together for decades and decades who have been waiting for the moment to happen in Illinois.”

The event will be held in the UIC Forum at the University of Illinois-Chicago campus.

The coalition group today released numbers highlighting what it took to get the bill past both chambers of the Illinois Legislature.

– More than 75,000 voters contacted in less than three months

– More than 80,000 emails messages were sent to state legislators in support of SB10.

– Nearly 18,000 postcards supporting marriage equality were collected and later delivered to members during in-district meetings and in their Springfield offices.

– More than 31,000 phone calls were placed to targeted members offices in support of SB10.

“Looking at the data and reflecting on all the work we accomplished makes me immensely proud to have worked on this campaign. The numbers show the vigor and momentum that IUM brought to the field in support of the freedom to marry in Illinois,” John Kohlhepp, Campaign Manager for Illinois Unites for Marriage said in a statement. “Each of these numbers reflect an Illinois voter, an Illinois family or an Illinois parent who took their time to join the effort to win the freedom to marry in our state.”