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Filed under: Lifestyle, Local News, National News
Thu. May 15, 2008 6:54:55 PM
Rep. Larry McKeon Was 63
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Chicago, IL — Former Illinois State Rep. Larry McKeon (D-Chicago), the first openly gay lawmaker in Illinois, died Tuesday at the age of 63.
Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie (D-Chicago) announced McKeon's passing Wednesday on the state House floor in Springfield. McKeon died of a stroke on Tuesday night.
An advocate for the LGBT community, McKeon is best known for working to expand the state's anti-discrimination law to protect gays and lesbians.
McKeon was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1996 from a district on the north side of Chicago and served 5 terms. Suffering from colorectal cancer, the HIV positive McKeon did not seek re-election in 2006. Openly gay Greg Harris (D-Chicago) was selected as McKeon's replacement.
Recently McKeon had been working part-time as a lobbyist in Springfield for clients including the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.
Prior to serving as State Rep., McKeon worked as Mayor Richard M. Daley's liaison to gays and lesbians as the executive director of the Chicago Commission on Human Relations' Advisory Council on Gay and Lesbian Issues. He was also a police officer and teacher.
He held degrees from California State University at Los Angeles and completed some doctoral work at the University of Chicago. He was a veteran of the United States Army.
McKeon was named to the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 1997.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
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