Cook County Clerk Monica Gordon said her office is reinforcing its diversity, equity and inclusion measures amid “threatening rhetoric and cruel policies” from the federal government that are creating uncertainty for marginalized communities.
That uncertainty has led to a surge in requests this year for vital records, particularly birth certificates and marriage licenses, Gordon said at a news conference Monday marking her 100th day in office at the Cook County office building in the Loop.
The increase in requests for records could indicate growing concerns among immigrant families and same-sex couples about how they can protect themselves from changes in federal policies that affect their communities, she said.
“We know that his is not just a coincidence. In fact, our staff and supervisors have spoken to many of our customers who say they are feeling anxious and concerned about their security and want to obtain these vital records as quickly as possible,” Gordon said.
Gordon announced that she will appoint the office’s first deputy clerk of diversity, equity and inclusion, a position that she said will be tasked with making sure “everything the clerk’s office does is rooted in equity.”
“Every resident of Cook County deserves to have their cultural and personal identity acknowledged, and I’ll be working to ensure that this office reflects that spirit,” Gordon said.
Gordon said the funding for the position is already in place and is coming from her office’s budget.
“To people who feel scared, people who feel unheard or unseen, Clerk Gordon is saying I see you, I hear you, you are safe,” said Salwa Rahim-Dillard, a DEI consultant and member of Gordon’s transition team.
Through the first two months of the year there has been a 22% increase in requests for birth certificates compared with the same period in 2024, according to the clerk’s office. Marriage and civil union license requests also have increased by 37% this year.
Gordon said part of the birth certificate requests increase is from immigrant families concerned about obtaining records that validate the citizenship of their children. And more same-sex couples are seeking marriage licenses because they are concerned that President Donald Donald Trump’s administration could roll back marriage equality and other protections.
After the Nov. 5 election, many same-sex couples braced for potential hostility from a second Trump administration. Trump already has signed executive orders targeting immigrants, birthright citizenship, DEI policies and the transgender community.
Courts have paused some of the executive orders.
“Here in the clerk’s office we are seeing the devastating effects of the federal administration’s threatening rhetoric and cruel policies and the unsettling impact it is having on the residents we serve,” Gordon said
Brian Johnson, chief executive of LGBTQ civil rights organization Equality Illinois, said increasingly larger swaths of the population identify as part of that community and must be protected.
“Queer people are your children, your doctors, your teachers, your pastors, your neighbors,” said Johnson, also a member of Gordon’s transition team. “And the LGBTQ+ community, particularly my trans siblings, are frightened and under attack.”
Gordon said more DEI measures will be integrated into her office after her transition team completes its report next month. Gordon was elected in November and will complete the two years left of the late Clerk Karen Yarbrough’s term.
“We want to make sure that every resident’s voice is heard, that everyone feels protected,” Gordon said. “People feel vulnerable. These communities feel more vulnerable than ever.”