Illinois has joined a growing list of states to recognize marriage equality.

State governor Pat Quinn signed into the law the marriage bill on the same desk that Abraham Lincoln used to write his inaugural address in the year 1861.

"In the very beginning of the Gettysburg Address, President Abraham Lincoln of Illinois said that our nation was conceived in liberty," Quinn said, as reported by the Chicago Tribune. "And he said it's dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal, and that's really what we're celebrating today. It's a triumph of democracy."

Quinn continued, noting that the fight is not over until the entire nation is able to share the same rights as those in Illinois and more than a dozen other states.

"We understand in our state that part of our unfinished business is to help other states in the United States achieve marriage equality," Quinn said. "We want to have a new birth of freedom across America, and love is not relegated to second-class citizen status."

Unfortunately the bill won't be fully processed until June 1 when all marriages will finally be a part of the law. That, however, could all change if Sen. Don Harmon is able to push a measure that would allow this date to change. Regardless, citizens of Illinois breathed a sigh of relief when their state finally made the big step towards equality for all.

"We're finally safe and protected in our home state," said Mary Anderson of Oak Park. "We'll have the same protections that our straight friends do."