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Community
MADVoters advocates for inclusive, healthy, and safe communities for all.
We advocate for:
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Clean air and water and accountability for polluters.
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Proactive approaches to public safety and community wellness that reduce the factors contributing to crime and recidivism, including gun safety, legalizing cannabis, and harm reduction care.
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Inclusion, advocacy, and humanitarian support for vulnerable communities, including immigrants, LGBTQ+ Hoosiers, Black and Brown Hoosiers, people who are unhoused, and people with disabilities.
TALKING POINTS
THE GUN INDUSTRY
The gun industry lobbies lawmakers to ensure its profits over public safety and sows fear and division to boost its bottom line. Gun lobbyists spend millions annually to protect the gun industry, solidify their interpretation of the Second Amendment, oppose stricter gun control legislation, expand gun access, and influence lawmakers.
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Click the image to view MADVoters Community Advocacy Series, or download a PDF version here.
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For example, the 2005 Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) gives the gun industry immunity from most legal accountability. The 1996 Dickey Amendment prohibits the use of federal funds to advocate for or promote gun control and restricts research on gun safety. The 2003 Tiahrt Amendment limits the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) from publicly disclosing crime gun trace information. Over time, the Tiahrt Amendment has been interpreted to shield the most negligent gun dealers from public scrutiny while also depriving the public of key data to help stem the flow of illegal guns.
The US has more licensed gun dealers than McDonald's, Wendy’s Burger King, and Subway combined. Gun dealers that fail to follow current laws on conducting background checks and gun sales (through inaccurate record-keeping and facilitating straw sales and gun trafficking) contribute to gun violence.
Chicago’s 2017 Gun Trace Report showed nearly 1 in 4 guns picked up by city police came from just 10 stores located across Illinois and northern Indiana. One Indiana gun dealer, Westforth Sports, contributed to 850 Chicago gun crimes between 2009 and 2016. Lax gun laws in states like Indiana make it easier for criminals to obtain guns.
Combatting gun violence is possible, and proven solutions have worked in other states, including safe storage requirements that hold adults accountable for failing to secure their guns, increasing the minimum age to purchase handguns, closing the unlicensed sale background check loophole, and banning aftermarket parts like bump stocks and high capacity magazines that create weapons of war with no business being on the civilian market.
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Sources: https://www.thetrace.org/2022/04/chicago-gun-stores-atf-trace-report-inspection, https://www.propublica.org/article/westforth-sports-gary-indiana-chicago-guns-illegal-sales, https://giffords.org/analysis/democracy-is-in-the-gun-lobbys-sights, https://www.bradyunited.org/programs/combating-crime-guns/identifying-problematic-gun-dealers, https://everytownresearch.org
GUN VIOLENCE
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In 2024, about 1,200 Hoosiers died by guns (including homicides, suicides, and accidents). This rate is over 34% higher than the national average. Firearms are the #1 cause of death for children and teens in both Indiana and the entire country, and Indiana’s youth gun deaths have increased 41% in the last 10 years.
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In 2022, Indiana Republicans passed permitless carry, which removes the requirement for individuals to obtain a permit prior to purchasing a firearm. This decision was strongly opposed by the Indiana State Police. Research suggests that permitless carry laws are associated with a 13-15% increase in violent crime rates 10 years after adoption. On average, states that have weakened their gun safety laws with policies like permitless carry have increased their gun death rates by 19% since 1990.
Sources: https://usafacts.org/answers/how-many-people-die-from-gun-related-injuries-in-the-us-each-month/state/indiana, https://www.thetrace.org/2024/08/permitless-concealed-carry-gun-super-bowl, https://everytownresearch.org/new-data-same-conclusion-smart-gun-laws-save-lives
POLLUTION​
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Indiana has the most coal ash pits (residual material left behind after coal is burned to generate electricity) in the entire country - a dangerous source of heavy metals, water contamination and pollution. Because Indiana utilities left millions of tons of coal ash sitting in direct contact with groundwater, the groundwater around 14 of 15 power plants across the state is no longer safe enough for drinking water.
In February 2026, President Trump’s EPA delayed coal ash clean-up and reporting in Indiana until 2032 “at the request of electric utility companies.” Utilities have reported the cost to keep the aging coal plants operational will cost over $100 million dollars just in capital investments. Daily operating costs will be $1.2 million, according to CenterPoint president Michael Roeder.
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Source: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2026/03/26/utilities-warn-of-soaring-costs-related-to-trump-order-for-indiana-coal-plants-to-stay-open, https://earthjustice.org/feature/coal-ash-states/indiana, https://www.indystar.com/story/news/environment/2021/02/10/other-states-more-protective-than-indiana-toxic-coal-ash/6657744002
LGBTQ+ JUSTICE​
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Attacks on transgender healthcare are fundamentally an attack on science and evidence-based care. Gender affirming care includes social, psychological, behavioral, and medical interventions designed to treat gender dysphoria, improve mental health, and allow transgender and non-binary individuals to live authentically and free from prejudice and discrimination.
Gender affirming care is considered best practice, and is supported by major medical associations including the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Nursing, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Physician Assistants, American College Health Association, American College of Physicians, American Counseling Association, American Medical Association, American Nurses Association, and more.
Restricting transgender healthcare, including for trans youth, violates the right of individuals and families to make their own decisions about their healthcare. This contributes to depression, social isolation, self-hatred, risk of self-harm and suicidal behavior, and contradicts the right of patients to access evidence-based care.
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There is no federal law that explicitly prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity - it’s a state decision. Indiana is one of 18 states that has no protections against discrimination for LGBTQ+ people, while the 32 other states have affirmed that anti-discrimination laws apply to sexual orientation; 26 also include gender identity. Bills have been filed to change this, but so far, none have moved forward.
LGBTQ+ people, especially youth, face much higher rates of depression, self-harm, and suicide. 39% of LGB youth, 46% of trans youth, have seriously considered suicide. LGBTQ+ people have long faced rejection, prejudice, and alienation for who they are. This discrimination can cause physical and emotional harm. When an LGBTQ+ person feels accepted by society, their mental and physical well-being improves, reducing depression and suicide.
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Sources: https://www.hrc.org/resources/get-the-facts-on-gender-affirming-care, https://www.lgbtmap.org/equality-maps/non_discrimination_laws
SYSTEMIC RACISM​​
In the early 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan rose to prominence in Indiana. Within just five years, a third of Protestant Hoosier men had joined the KKK. Nationally, Indiana was said to have the most powerful KKK, with the highest share of residents in the Klan and the largest Klan gatherings and parades.
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Beginning in the 1930s, city surveyors began “grading” neighborhoods, color coding them on a scale from green (best) down to red (hazardous). This is called redlining. The “red” neighborhoods typically shared characteristics: low-income, high-pollution (due to city sewer runoff and waste disposal sites), high numbers of rental units/multi-family units, and high immigrant populations. Mortgage lenders considered those “redlined” areas to be a credit risk, so home loans were nearly impossible to attain for these neighborhoods, leading to decades of suppressed home ownership and systemic disinvestment in these communities. Decades of redlining resulted in neighborhoods that to this day struggle with higher crime, lower life expectancy, and less economic opportunities.
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In 1954, the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court decision ordered schools to desegregate nationwide, but many districts - including Indianapolis Public Schools - dragged their feet. By 1973, federal courts determined that schools had still not complied with the order, and mandated that Indianapolis desegregate its schools by bussing inner city students out to the suburb school districts. Black & Brown students experienced alienation at these suburban schools, and many felt uprooted from their communities. White parents resisted these integration efforts, and many enrolled their children in private schools instead. This began a divide between public and private schooling, which motivated Indiana’s 2011 school voucher program. The bussing program continued for 25 years. From 1973-1998, 64,000 students left IPS.
In 2025, one of the first initiatives Governor Braun rolled out was eliminating DEI from all state agencies. In response, Rep. Earl Harris Jr., chair of the Indiana Black Legislative Caucus, issued this statement: “DEI practices are not about giving any group of people a handout, it's about helping people who have been historically overlooked [with] a hand up. Gov. Braun's pivot to 'Merit, Excellence and Innovation' creates an insidious, false narrative that DEI leads to unqualified individuals getting promoted based only on their race or nationality. This is not and has never been the case, and the insinuation is not only deeply offensive, but harmful to minority workers throughout the state.”
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Sources: https://indyencyclopedia.org/features/residential-segregation-in-indianapolis/, michaeljhicks.substack.com/p/the-long-tail-of-hate, indystar.com/in-depth/news/environment/2020/05/02/redlined-indianapolis-areas-still-see-poverty-poor-health/3017810001,
https://indyencyclopedia.org/features/residential-segregation-in-indianapolis/,
https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/from-segregation-to-rebuilding-stronger-ips-works-to-address-inequities-across-the-district-johnson-scotus-education/531-9beeaebd-93cd-4407-a9fc-18d258f62221
ICE & IMMIGRATION
Indiana law enforcement has actively partnered with ICE and federal immigration enforcement. At the beginning of his term in 2025, Governor Braun issued an executive order directing Hoosier law enforcement agencies to “fully cooperate with ICE, and, to the maximum extent permitted, enter into (287(g) agreements.” The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office became Indiana’s first law enforcement agency to participate in the 287(g) program. which allows ICE to delegate certain immigration enforcement powers to state or local officers. Also in 2025, DHS announced a partnership with the Miami County Correctional Facility, adding 1,000 beds for immigration detention, calling it “The Speedway Slammer.” Camp Atterbury, a large military facility in Johnson County, was also approved as a detention site for another 1,000 beds.
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From January-July 2025, nearly 1,400 Hoosiers had been arrested by ICE, almost an 80% increase from the previous year. About a quarter of those individuals had no criminal convictions or charges.
In early 2026, ICE opened an administrative office in Carmel, Local government officials said they were not made aware of the use of office space ahead of time.
2026’s SEA 76 mandates that schools and local governments comply and cooperate with federal immigration enforcement, like ICE detainers, or face a $10,000 penalty per violation. This increases the risk of unlawful detention, Fourth Amendment violations, and costly litigation. The law also increases surveillance of immigrant communities, which undermines public trust and cooperate with local law enforcement.
The Indiana Latino Democratic Caucus has published a guide on how to find an individual who has been detained by ICE: https://indianalatinodemocraticcaucus.substack.com/p/find-an-ice-detainee-guide
CANNABIS LEGALIZATION
Indiana is one of only 10 states that doesn’t allow either medicinal or recreational cannabis sales. While Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio have all legalized both recreational and medical use of cannabis for adults, and Kentucky has legalized medical use, Indiana has doubled down, passing laws to ban cannabis advertising and attempting to ban delta-8 products.
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Legalizing cannabis would generate revenue for the state, reduce stigma, create jobs and business opportunities, and make it easier for people who have cannabis records or cannot pass a drug test to find employment. HB 1630 (2025), which proposed legalizing cannabis in Indiana, projected that the state could generate up to $200.6 million in new annual revenue.
Sources: https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2026/02/02/indiana-keeps-bucking-marijuana-legalization-tightening-related-laws-instead/,
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/tolls-wont-fix-indianas-budget-090212996.html