Gov. Pat Quinn signed the Civil Union Bill into law on Monday, but Nick Canaday, the social director of EIU PRIDE, said there is still a ways to go before equality is reached.

“My initial reaction is to be happy,” said Canaday, a junior English major. “Its nice to finally have legal recognition for our relationships.”

However, while Illinois is one of the few states in the US to recognize a civil union between gay and lesbian couples, this contract will not be seen as the same across state lines.

“One of the main issues this creates is the notion of separate but equal,” Canaday said. “It’s just saying that it is good enough to have a civil union and basic rights but it’s not at the same level as a marriage.”

The idea that it is not a license that is recognized across state lines is not constitutional, said Ryan Plunkett, the president of the EIU Democrats.

“That is not how these things are supposed to work,” Plunkett said.

The US saw this same debate in the ’60s and ’70s over interracial marriages, Plunkett said.

In the Supreme Court Decision of Loving v. Virginia, bans were lifted on interracial marriages.

“Eventually this ban was struck down,” Plunkett said. “Someone will eventually take (the Civil Union law) to court and it will be made right too.”

Ohio is another state in the Midwest that extends civil unions to gay and lesbian couples.

However, in Ohio, the supreme court found the absence of equal civil union rights to be unconstitutional however, making Illinois the only state in the region that has put it into law by legislative action, Plunkett said.

The Civil Union Bill that was passed in December by a vote of 61-52 in the Illinois House and 32-24 in the Senate gives rights to gay and lesbian couples such as hospital visitation and social security.

“This affects all LGBT across the nation; it is absolutely a step in the right direction,” Canaday said. “However, there are still some things to keep working towards.”

Hospital visitation rights and legal rights to money are two examples Canaday used that are now legitimized for gay and lesbian couples.

“While I can’t speak for every member of the LBGT community, the majority of us are happy but we are going to keep working for more,” Canaday said. “But it definitely gives us more protection than there was before. This is recognizing it really as more of just a business deal instead of a vow of love and trust.”

Kayleigh Zyskowski can be reached at 581-2812 or kzyskowski@eiu.edu