Prominent Chicagoans Join Coretta Scott King for Lambda Celebration

(CHICAGO, March 5, 1998) -- Coretta Scott King will be joined by a distinguished spectrum of political, business, and community leaders in Chicago next month, to celebrate Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund's 25th anniversary and its civil rights work for lesbians, gay men, and people with HIV.

Mrs. King will deliver the Bon Foster Memorial Civil Rights Lecture at Lambda's annual luncheon, which will be followed by a VIP reception, on Tuesday, March 31, at noon at the Palmer House Hilton.

"We are honored to be joined by Mrs. King and so many prominent Chicago leaders in celebrating Lambda's silver anniversary," said Lambda Executive Director Kevin M. Cathcart. "Lambda has been a major force for civil rights over the past 25 years, defending civil rights protections for lesbians and gay men, challenging anti-gay bias in the military and in marriage laws, as well as fighting for fair treatment of gay youth and gay families."

Maggie C. Daley and the Reverend Dr. Kenneth B. Smith, president of the Chicago Theological Seminary, are honorary co-chairs of the Lambda event. Event co-chairs are Lisa Freeman, an attorney for Amoco Corp., and Steve Wakefield, of the Night Ministry. The host committee includes: Mayor Richard Daley, Senators Carol Moseley-Braun and Richard Durbin, and many other elected officials and civil rights, philanthropic, gay community, and corporate leaders from the Chicago area.

"Lambda's Midwest Office is marking a fifth anniversary as well as Lambda's 25th," said Midwest Regional Office Managing Attorney Patricia M. Logue, adding, "In the Midwest, we have strengthened protections for gay youth and families, helped secure domestic partner benefits for Chicago's employees, and put a stop to the Chicago Board of Education's discriminatory hiring practices which targeted those with HIV and AIDS. We strive to live up to the high standards set by civil rights leaders like Mrs. King."

Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund is a national organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, and people with HIV and AIDS through impact litigation, education, and public policy work. Headquartered in New York, and with offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Atlanta, Lambda has regional and national expertise in all aspects of sexual orientation and HIV-related law and policy.

The annual Bon Foster Memorial Civil Rights Lecture serves as an educational forum at which Lambda considers its work in the broader spectrum of civil rights struggles taking place across the nation. Bon Foster was a Chicago attorney who died of AIDS in 1991, and his generosity enabled the creation of Lambda's Midwest Regional Office.

Tables and individual tickets for the event are now available and can be purchased from the Midwest Regional Office. Contact: Marty Grochala, 312-663-4413, ext. 29.

Contact: Peg Byron, 212-809-8585 x 230, 888-987-1984 (pager), Toby L. Neiman, 312-663-4413 x 28