Carmel And Fishers Mayors Say Open To All: Neither City Prohibits Discrimination Based On Sexual Orientation

Many larger Indiana cities have adopted local human rights ordinances barring discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, including Bloomington, Evansville, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Michigan City, Lafayette, South Bend, Terre Haute and West Lafayette, even though the state's civil rights law like Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act does not include sexual orientation as a protected class.

Oddly, mayors of Carmel and Fishers, the two largest suburban Indianapolis communities whose mayors are preaching openness and equality in the wake of the backlash over false claims that Indiana's newly-enacted RFRA law allows discrimination against gays, do not have local ordinances protecting their residents from discrimination based on sexual orientation. Here's what Carmel Mayor James Brainard and Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness had to say about RFRA according to WISH-TV:

The fallout from the Religious Freedom Restoration Act is being felt in communities around the state. In Fishers, Mayor Scott Fadness issued a proclamation regarding the bill. In part it simply states the city is and always has been inclusive and proud of its diversity.

Fadness said Fishers aspires to be a “smart, vibrant and entrepreneurial” community and he wants to make sure those looking to locate there – be it a business or a new resident – know they are welcome . . .

“In Fishers we want to send the message to our businesses and our residents that we’re open for business,” Fadness said. “We’re inclusive of everyone and we’re going to continue to further this entrepreneurial culture.” . . . In Carmel, Mayor Jim Brainard said he’s made it clear from the beginning that the state and Carmel welcomes people from all backgrounds and all beliefs.

“One of Indiana’s strengths is always been that we are hospitable and we’re welcoming and this law does not express the way people are in Indiana,” he said. “And we need to fix that as quickly as possible.”

Brainard said the state is “shooting itself in the foot” and needs to “be smarter than that” and hopes the legislature does something soon to remedy the perception that Indiana isn’t about Hoosier Hospitality . . . 

The two Republican mayors aren't alone in their hypocrisy on the subject. Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott, Jr., whose city also lacks a local ordinance protecting its residents from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, wants Gov. Mike Pence to resign:

In the wake of Indiana’s controversial new “religious freedom” law, Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said Indiana Gov. Mike Pence should resign for the good of the state.

“I’m embarrassed that this guy’s our governor, and I’m embarrassed that they [Republicans] don’t even talk to the minority party when they’re trying to pass bills,” McDermott said. “They don’t talk to Democrats, they don’t care what Democrats have to say. They stepped in it this time.”

McDermott said any CEO who embarrasses his company like Pence has embarrassed Indiana would resign . . .

I’m not embarrassed to be a Hoosier. Hoosiers are great people. They’re tolerant people. They’re smart people. They’re caring and compassionate people. This is not what we Hoosiers are, and Governor Pence knows that,” McDermott said.

Yeah, do as I say, not as I do.

UPDATE: So the Indianapolis Star hosted a debate between incumbent mayor James Brainard and Councilor Rick Sharp. Was the most important questions in the debate about the City's mounting debt or the massive corruption the Star has ignored surrounding Brainard's use of hundreds of millions of city tax dollars to financially benefit a handful of business owners who are stuffing money in his pockets? No. The question was about a human rights ordinance to protect gays against discrimination.

In a mayoral debate Wednesday, Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard and challenger Rick Sharp said they would support enacting a human rights ordinance to protect against discrimination for sexual orientation and gender identity.

Brainard and Sharp also said the state's "freedom of religion" law needs to be fixed to ensure it does not allow discrimination.

"Growing up in a little town in Indiana, one of the first things we were taught as kids was that you treat everyone fairly and equally," Brainard said.

"I think he stated it well," Sharp said. "I abhor discrimination in any form."

The moment of agreement was fleeting. Brainard and Sharp found little else in common during the 90-minute debate sponsored by The Indianapolis Star at the Carmel library.

The Indianapolis Star loves their boy Brainard. It doesn't matter how corrupt he is, the Star will never report anything negative on him because he's an unabashed supporter of the Gannett New World Order agenda as dictated by its CIA masters in Langley, Virginia. Brainard fawns all over Barack Obama every chance he can get during his frequent trips to the White House, which may explain why a public corruption task force was given a stand down order with respect to the Carmel corruption.