Robb and Steve had been together since Christmas Day 2011 and entered into a civil union in Illinois in January 2013. While 13 other states enacted marriage equality but Illinois did not, Steve developed Stage 3 Melanoma and grew seriously ill. By the time it became clear how sick Steve was, it was too late for the couple even to travel out-of-state to get married. Steve died last week – on September 10th, 2013. He was 32.
Says Robert:
"He wanted one thing in his whole life and that was to get married and he didn't get it. And he will never get it now. And I don't think they realize that we're real people. Thousands of us have probably missed out just in Illinois. I don't understand the problem. People are dying without being equal. Civil unions are not marriage. A different title does not mean it's the same thing. You have a group of people that you call something different and yes, everybody's gonna think they're different. And we're not, really."
Just one among many reasons why marriage equality is important and cannot wait any longer.
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