GOP Indianapolis mayor defies Pence, bans discrimination by Christian businesses receiving city funds

Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard (R) on Monday responded to Indiana law legalizing discrimination against LGBT people by calling on the state to add sexual orientation to its civil rights law.

At a press conference on Monday, Ballard said that he would issue an executive order that required all businesses to follow the city's human rights ordinance, the Indianapolis Starreported.

Ballard's comments came after the NCAA President Mark Emmert said that he was "very concerned" about holding sporting events, including the Final Four, in Indianapolis if lawmakers did not address the potential for discrimination in the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

"Our city thrives because we have welcomed and embraced diversity. And RFRA threatens what thousands have spent decades building," Ballard said on Monday. "Discrimination is wrong. And I hope that message is being heard loud and clear at our Statehouse."

"Indianapolis will not be defined by this. Indianapolis welcomes everybody," he promised those attending the Final Four basketball tournament next weekend.

Watch the video below from WISH-TV, broadcast March 30, 2015.