At the culmination of the Indiana Black Expo Business Conference on Tuesday, Gov. Mike Braun recognized five minority community leaders and one staff member of the Indiana Civil Rights Commission for their achievements, saying they have made a “huge difference in Hoosiers’ lives.”
Braun presented the awards at the Governor’s Reception, hosted by the Indiana Civil Rights Commission, in partnership with Indiana Black Expo and the Indiana Department of Administration. The event, held in one of the ballrooms at the Indiana Convention Center in downtown Indianapolis, has long been a gubernatorial tradition with previous Indiana governors also honoring minority leaders.
“These leaders have gone above and beyond,” Braun said of the six award recipients. “They’ve done something, yes, for their own career trajectory, but like many leaders, they’re actually helping many others along the way. The state of Indiana is very grateful for your service, and I want to thank all of you as well as your commitment to bettering our state, for being involved in your community, and setting out on your own course in terms of what might lie ahead.”
The reception was held less than a week after the governor’s office released its report on identifying and removing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from state agencies and departments across the executive branch. On Jan. 14, one day after he was inaugurated, Braun issued an executive order calling for a full review of policies, procedures, regulations and programming related to what the Republican governor has described as “the divisive, politically-charged DEI ideology.”…