Indianapolis Mayor Denounces Indiana’s Religious Objections Law and Reaffirms City’s Openness
Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard City of Indianapolis
Amid the ongoing furor that’s tarnishing Indiana’s economic image, Greg Ballard calls on his fellow Republicans to extend state civil rights protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
Denouncing Indiana’s controversial new religious objections law, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard on Monday called on his fellow Republicans in the state government to extend state civil rights protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity and reaffirmed his city’s commitment to non-discrimination.
"This isn't about politics. This isn't about PR. This is about doing what's right for individuals, for our city, and our state," Ballard said, according to local television station WRTV. "Discrimination is wrong, and I hope that message is being heard loud and clear at the Statehouse.”
On Thursday, Gov. Mike Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which has raised significant concerns inside and outside Indiana over whether the new law could allow business owners to legally discriminate against members of the LGBT community by refusing service.
The new law has been met with wide condemnation from the business and technology community and the state’s national image has taken a huge hit in recent days, with some corporate leaders even pledging to cancel large projects, conventions and meetings planned for the state.
The mayors of San Francisco and Seattle have also banned city-funded travel to the state of Indiana because of the law.
The mayor’s official declaration of non-discrimination, released Monday, also requests that the Indiana General Assembly and the governor to “expressly exempt the City’s ordinances, resolutions, executive or administrative orders, regulations, customs and usages from RFRA’s application.”
While Pence has reaffirmed his support for the religious objections law, he said over the weekend that he wanted to “clarify” the intent of the law.
On Monday, Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma said, according to Reuters, that "lawmakers were looking at different options for clarifying the law, such as perhaps removing the specter of it being used as a defense to a claim that services were denied on a discriminatory basis.”
House Minority Leader Scott Pelath said at a news conference, according to the news agency: “We've been embarrassed before the nation."