The most important thing you can do: make sure your NOW membership is current — here are the links to join or renew. Annual memberships are $40 for residents of Illinois. We are chapter #IL0010. We welcome your involvement. You can reach us at 815-366-7942 or nwsubilnow.gmail.com. Visit Illinois NOW and Planned Parenthood Illinois Action for what’s hot, and thank you!
The coronavirus crisis, which is killing millions of people worldwide and has thrown so many of us into economic desperation, highlights the need for paid sick leave. In any kind of sane society, people MUST have the ability to take off from work when they or their family members get sick. A broad coalition of organizations, led by Women Employed, has come together to demand the passage of a strong paid sick leave bill in Illinois.
Please visit the Women Employed website to sign on to the campaign, and visit SickTime.org to learn about Chicago’s paid sick time law.
We celebrate the passage of the Illinois Youth Health and Safety Act in 2021.
Sponsored by legislators Villanueva, Sims, Martinez, Feigenholtz, Fine, Harris and Castro, the new law guarantees our youth inclusive, affirming, and comprehensive sexual health education — the full toolbox of knowledge and skills necessary to support responsible and informed decisions about their health to reduce harm and support overall well-being throughout their entire lives. The Act improves on the previous law, by removing outdated, stigmatizing language and builds on current standards for health and sex ed courses. Get full details here.
We celebrate the passage late in 2021 of a law that repealed Illinois’ horrendous Forced Parental Notice of Abortion law. The PNA law that has been repealed required a teenage girl to seek the approval of a judge to get an abortion if she can’t notify her parents.
The vast majority of teenage girls who can tell their parent(s) about their pregnancy, will … but sadly it is all too common in our society that they simply can’t. They may be in an abusive family situation. It may be a relative who has gotten them pregnant. They may get beaten up, or thrown out of the house. We need to spare our teenage girls that trauma and allow them to get the abortion they need, when they need it.
The repeal takes effect in June 2022, so for now if you need an abortion and can’t tell your parent(s), the Judicial Bypass Project is still in full swing. Get full details at the ACLU of Illinois and get the full printable fact sheet.
With a long list of sponsors and support from over 170 organizations in the Illinois Gun Violence Prevention Coalition, this bill will go far to help reduce the carnage from firearms that currently afflicts our society. Most importantly, it closes the gun-show loophole, requiring a point-of-sale background check for all gun sales, including those by an unlicensed dealer. It modernizes the FOID act, requiring applicants for a gun license to submit fingerprints with their application, and requires the Illinois State Police to remove guns once a FOID card is revoked. Get full details here.
