I have thought a lot about why they have the law to begin with and I have come to the large realization that many my age are really to imature to even have firearms excepy for the ones who went through LAw Enforcement or the Military.
Many people your age are not mature and many are. Choosing a career in law enforcement or military may, in many cases, be an indication of maturity, *BUT* *not* choosing such a career is by no means *EVER* an indication of lack of maturity.
Please don't buy into the propaganda about these laws. They are merely designed to control as many people as people. Young people are vulnerable to this because sadly, not too many voters and legislators care much about the rights of young people.
If indeed, the law demands a paternal signature there is a huge equal protection problem. It sounds from other posters like there are alternatives. Personally, in Illinois, right now, I would hesitate to ask a campus-based legal advice center for advice on firearms law. They seem to indicate that are *not* serving as your lawyer, but pointing you in the right direction. There may be no confidentiality, and at this stage in your life/career, you don't need hysterics jumping to conclusions about you.
Unless your twentieth birthday was yesterday, time will take care of this problem pretty quickly, probably more quickly than any legal process, and a heckuva lot more cheaply.