The past month has brought much turmoil to the state of Indiana surrounding Governor Mike Pence’s passage of the RFRA law or SB568.
In response to this negative perception of Indiana, two Greencastle councilmen took it upon themselves to author a resolution establishing the city as a welcoming environment. The authors were councilmen Adam Cohen and Tyler Wade.
On Tuesday, April 14 the resolution titled: "Resolution Reaffirming Greencastle's Commitment to Providing an Inclusive and Welcoming Community," passed unanimously during the council’s monthly session.
"We felt it was vital to make a strong statement that Greencastle is open and inviting to everyone," councilman Wade told the Banner Graphic.
The resolution makes many statements about Greencastle’s priorities in being an inclusive town, making sure that any and all visitors and residents feel safe within its limits.
It also suggests that it is the cities duty to “reaffirm its commitment to diversity and inclusion through law and ordinances that protect individuals from discrimination.”
One of the main goals of the resolution is that “all city offices and companies that do business with the city should not discriminate on the basis or race, religion, ethnicity, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, nation origin, ancestry, age or United States military veteran status, except where these statuses are a bona fide qualification for employment or otherwise allowed by law.”
Finally, it charges the president of the City Council to appoint a committee that would be responsible for bringing laws and policies of Greencastle to align with this statement.
The DePauw supports this resolution passed by the City Council. It is important that all students who attend DePauw and all future students who visit and make the decision to attend DePauw feel safe and welcomed in Greencastle.
With all the turmoil that RFRA has created in Indiana it is nice to see the town that has become our home take a stand in favor of preventing discrimination and supporting all of the people.