FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 5th, 2024

LGBTQ+ advocates urge the Illinois courts to advance an affirming legal system for LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV

At a time when LGBTQ+ people and families face heightened and cruel legal attacks across the country, organizations in Illinois that serve LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV on Wednesday called for a requirement that attorneys, judges, and courtroom staff be educated about the specific legal needs and life experiences of LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV. In a letter [LINKED HERE] to the Illinois Supreme Court and relevant judicial agencies, the organizations said that LGBTQ+ and HIV cultural competency training should be a consistently-required part of continuing legal and judicial education.

The letter from the organizations is part of an advocacy campaign to advance an affirming legal system for LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV. This spring, advocates worked with the Illinois General Assembly to adopt resolutions calling on the state’s high court to adopt the continuing legal education mandate for LGBTQ+ and HIV cultural competency instruction. House Resolution 582 and Senate Resolution 733 were sponsored by State Rep. Eva-Dina Delgado and State Sen. Mike Simmons, respectively.

Requiring this inclusive training will help the state’s legal professionals fulfill their responsibility to provide affirming and inclusive services to all people who come into contact with the structures of the legal system. LGBTQ+ people and people living with HIV experience pervasive harassment, discrimination, and exclusion in law offices, legal clinics, courts, and courthouses, creating distrust and harm. In fact, according to a survey conducted by Lambda Legal, 32.2% of LGBTQ+ people do not trust the court system at all while only 8.5% completely trust the court system.

This year, more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in statehouses across the country, including initiatives to criminalize healthcare for trans individuals, to create licenses to discriminate against LGBTQ+ families, and to deny LGBTQ+ students the opportunity to experience the stories of people like themselves. Furthermore, 34 states still have laws on their books that criminalize HIV exposure, according to the CDC.

As a result of this legislative onslaught, Illinois is experiencing an influx of LGBTQ+ people and families who are visiting or moving to Illinois from states with anti-LGBTQ+, anti-healthcare, and HIV criminalization laws. As LGBTQ+ people and families visit Illinois to access reproductive healthcare and gender-affirming care or move to Illinois in order to escape the oppression of cruel and harsh anti-LGBTQ+ regimes in other states, the legal professionals in Illinois will more frequently come into contact with and represent LGBTQ+ people who need legal services to defend their rights, freedom, and bodily autonomy. The legal profession in Illinois must meet the moment and require LGBTQ+ and HIV cultural competency education for judges, attorneys, and court personnel.

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