FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 28, 2008
Freeheld - Hester and Andree
Freeheld - Hester and Andree
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: William W. Greaves
March 24, 2008
312-744-7911 Academy Award–Winning Documentary Launches Push for Civil Unions in Illinois The City of Chicago’s Advisory Council on LGBT Issues, Center on Halsted, and Equality Illinois Host Screening of “Freeheld” “The Oscar-winning film ‘Freeheld’ makes a powerful argument for civil unions,” said Dana V. Starks, Chair and Commissioner of the City of Chicago Commission on Human Relations, and Bill Greaves, Director of the Commission’s Advisory Council on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues (ACLGBTI). A free screening of “Freeheld” will be the kickoff event for the April 9 lobby day for civil unions in Illinois, when individuals from all over the state will travel to Springfield to press for passage of H.B.1826, which would legalize civil unions. “Freeheld” will be shown at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 8, in the Hoover-Leppen Theatre at Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted Street. A pre-screening reception will begin at 6:30 p.m. This event is sponsored by ACLGBTI, Center on Halsted, and Equality Illinois. Cynthia Wade's award-winning documentary, “Freeheld,” follows the struggle of the late Lt. Laurel Hester — an Ocean County, New Jersey, police detective — to make her pension benefits available to her domestic partner, Stacie Andree. While Hester was dying of lung cancer, elected officials in Ocean County stood firmly against her and her supporters. After the screening of the film, a question-and-answer session with Professor Beth Kelly of DePaul University will take place. Kelly, a member of ACLGBTI, was a college friend of Laurel Hester and served as a consultant to the filmmakers. She teaches in DePaul’s LGBTQ Studies Program. More information about H.B.1826 and civil unions in Illinois can be found at http://www.civilunionsillinois.org/. More information about “Freeheld” is available at http://www.freeheld.com/.
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