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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING COOK COUNTY'S CONTRIBUTION TO LGBTQ+ HISTORY
WHEREAS, Cook County and the Chicago area has had its share of contributions to the history of the LGBTQ+ community with amazing advocates such as Art Johnston and Robert Castillo; and
WHEREAS, Art Johnston and his partner Jos? "Pep" Pe?a are nationally recognized LGBTQ+ civil rights leaders and the subject of an award-winning feature documentary, ART AND PEP, opened the iconic gay bar Sidetrack in 1982, and fueled a local civil rights movement that is still active today; and
WHEREAS, Johnston became an early member of Chicago's Gay Athletic Association (later the Metropolitan Sports Association) serving on its board of directors between 1978 and 1991, and went on to help gain the league acceptance to the National Association of Amateur Gay Athletes; and
WHEREAS, Johnston was a co-founder of the Illinois Federation for Human Rights (now called Equality Illinois), whose primary mission is passage of state-level human rights legislation that includes equal protection for lesbian and gay Illinoisans; and
WHEREAS, Johnston was a pioneer in getting his suppliers to provide sponsorship for gay and lesbian athletic events, street fairs, community-based HIV and AIDS service providers, and other gay and lesbian organizations; and
WHEREAS, the late Ron Sable persuaded Johnston to become a founding board member of IMPACT, which served as the springboard for Johnston later to join with Jon-Henri Damski, Laurie Dittman, and Rick Garcia as the "Gang of Four" in organizing Gay and Lesbian Town Meetings, which was responsible for heightened lobbying efforts that in 1988 finally ushered in a historic Chicago ordinance banning discrimination because of sexual orientation and the 1993 passage of Cook County's Human Rights Ordinance; and
WHEREAS, the late Jon-Henri Damski was a columnist for GayLife, Gay Chicago Magazine, Windy City Times, and Nightlines and Out...
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