04-11-2012 Mayor Pete Buttigieg State of the City of South Bend

Home Browse Search

SpU TH 8F � G z s 1865 CITY OF SOUTH BEND PETE BUTTIGIEG, MAYOR OFFICE OF THE MAYOR role as mayor, I cannot please everyone. Ultimately, this administration, its leaders, and I, must be judged on whether the city was well-served by our choices. On whether South Bend becomes, on our watch, a better place in which to live, work, and raise a family. My commitment to you is that I will always make decisions with a view to this goal, whatever the consequences or appearances. • Meanwhile,we have all had occasion to think about what it means to have an inclusive city government that reflects the richness and diversity of our community as a whole. • Our city has made great gains in inclusiveness in recent years, and I am committed to keeping this up. I am proud to have assembled a mayor's office staff that includes diversity of ethnicity, race, orientation, gender, and background. • Not just on my office team but in appointments to senior positions, boards and commissions, we value and seek diversity in age, background,perspective, religion, ethnicity, and gender. • Policy-wise, I stood up for diversity in what I considered to be an important way at the Council meeting a few weeks ago, and it was inspiring to see one citizen after another, young, old, black, white, gay, straight, clergy, teacher, veteran, come to the microphone and call for equal protection under the law by expanding our non-discrimination ordinance to ensure that no person will be fired simply over sexual orientation. • We are making strides with our Diversity Utilization Board, taking concrete steps to make it easier for women- and minority-owned businesses to play a major role in future economic growth and government contracting, as they did in the construction of this Kroc Center. 1400 COUNTY-CITY BUILDING•227 W.JEFFERSON BOULEVARD•SOUTH BEND,INDIANA 46601 PHONE 574/235-9261• FAx 574/235-9892