INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Equality has released a "Report to the Community" on its activities in 2005, highlighting the successful effort to ban discrimination in Indianapolis on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The work of 18 local organizations under the umbrella of IE Region 8 resulted in the passage by the Indianapolis City-County Council on December 19, 2005, of Indiana’s only LGBT-inclusive human rights ordinance.

"The fact that both Democratic and Republican members of the Indianapolis City-Council supported the extension of protections says that Indiana's leaders believe strongly in fairness for all Hoosiers," comments John Clower, Chair of Indiana Equality.

Indiana Equality has two primary objectives – to amend Indiana’s Civil Rights law to protect against discrimination based on either sexual orientation or gender identity, and to ensure that relationship protections for LGBT couples and families are not outlawed by an amendment to the State Constitution.

Indiana Equality and its coalition members have been at the forefront of the advocacy and lobbying battle in opposition to Senate Joint Resolution 7, a proposal banning same-sex marriage and legal protections for unmarried opposite-sex and same-sex couples. During the 2005 session of the state legislature, Indiana Equality and its coalition members turned back discriminatory proposals that would have restricted adoption and foster care by LGBT families prohibited state universities from providing domestic partner benefits, and criminalized artificial insemination for unmarried women.

"The Indiana Equality coalition and its volunteers experienced many successes in 2005," observes Kathy Sarris, president of the organization. "We have fostered the emergence and growth of regional groups and organizations, expanded our communications capacity, offered educational forums and training, and blocked anti-LGBT legislative proposals."

Founded in 2003, Indiana Equality is a coalition of organizations from around the state that focus on ensuring basic human rights for Indiana’s LGBT citizens. Participating organizations include Interfaith Coalition on Nondiscrimination (ICON), Indiana Transgender Rights Advocacy Alliance (INTRAA), Indiana Action Network (IAN), Justice, Inc., Indiana PFLAG Alliance, Indianapolis Rainbow Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Social Workers – Indiana Chapter, Human Rights Coalition Indianapolis Steering Committee, and the Northeast Indiana AIDS Memorial, as well as regional steering committees in the Indianapolis, Bloomington, Evansville, Fort Wayne, Lafayette, and South Bend areas.

 Indiana Equality Website