07/29/2026
We Signed On. Now We Organize.
Dear Startup Ladies Community,
Today (July 16, 2026), The Startup Ladies joined the African American Coalition of Indianapolis, Concerned Clergy of Indianapolis, Indiana Black Expo, the Indianapolis Urban League, and the Indy Black Chamber of Commerce in a public statement opposing Governor Mike Braun’s decision to terminate Indiana’s Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises Program.
We signed on because standing together matters. Silence would allow this administration to pretend that women and minority business owners support dismantling a program created because qualified people were being kept out of state contracting opportunities.
The joint statement explains why the language of “merit” is so dishonest and presents the economic evidence supporting supplier diversity. I want to talk directly to The Startup Ladies community about what this decision means, why it is a warning, and what we are going to do next.
What happened?
On Wednesday, July 15, Governor Braun announced plans to eliminate the race- and sex-based components of Indiana’s supplier diversity program and replace them with a broader small-business initiative.
WBE and MBE certification did not hand anyone a contract. Business owners still had to build legitimate companies, compete for opportunities, prove they could perform the work, meet the requirements, and deliver results.
The program existed because qualified women and minority business owners had been deliberately kept out of the relationships, information, networks, and circles of influence connected to public dollars. It created visibility, established participation goals, measured outcomes, and required the state to pay attention to who was receiving taxpayer-funded business.
Indiana has not demonstrated that those disparities have disappeared. The administration is simply eliminating the infrastructure created to address them.
This is a bellwether.
This is not an isolated policy decision. It is a bellwether for what will continue happening to women, people of color, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and other marginalized Hoosiers unless we organize and fight back.
Indiana is rarely first at anything, including bad public policy. Texas removed women- and minority-owned businesses from its Historically Underutilized Business Program in December 2025. Business owners sued, and a judge temporarily restored their eligibility while the lawsuit continues.
At the federal level, the rollback of programs supporting disadvantaged contractors is already causing lost revenue, project delays, layoffs, and uncertainty for women- and minority-owned businesses across the country.
Indiana is following a larger playbook. Programs created to address documented discrimination are being rebranded as discrimination. Efforts to open doors are being characterized as unfair advantages. If the government stops measuring who receives access to public opportunities, it becomes much easier for established networks to close those doors again without accountability.
You can read more about the larger pattern here:
1 - National coverage of Indiana’s decision
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/justice/4649275/indiana-braun-race-sex-business-enterprises-program/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-87GIUI1QENw8u-WAo32ZayNj2KpNRmDXs67D3WKcPk_a30pYbL1mltSB24Sy9L51A2eNWU
2 - Texas removes women and minorities from its state contracting program
https://www.texastribune.org/2025/12/02/texas-historically-underutilized-business-program-hub-women-minorities/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-87GIUI1QENw8u-WAo32ZayNj2KpNRmDXs67D3WKcPk_a30pYbL1mltSB24Sy9L51A2eNWU
3 - Judge temporarily restores eligibility for women- and minority-owned businesses in Texas
https://www.texastribune.org/2026/03/02/texas-minority-women-business-hub-program-lawsuit-comptroller/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-83nAq0CeFyuBjScVKxZTmdk7BOKmnknIDm6AUYUkXCVK2mrBDJNsynjMoZAsvlruYbx4XU
4 - Reuters reports on the national impact of contracting rollbacks
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/minority-contractors-say-trump-dei-rollback-poses-threat-their-livelihoods-2026-03-17/?utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-83nAq0CeFyuBjScVKxZTmdk7BOKmnknIDm6AUYUkXCVK2mrBDJNsynjMoZAsvlruYbx4XU
We are opening the room.
The Startup Ladies does not provide state certification, procurement, or compliance services, and we have no intention of attempting to replace the state’s program.
But we know how to build community. We know how to gather smart people, create a room where they can speak honestly, connect them to one another, and turn frustration into action.
On Wednesday, August 5, we are hosting Indiana W/MBE Business Owners: What Now?, a free community conversation for women and minority business owners, entrepreneurs, organizational leaders, and allies.
We intentionally scheduled this gathering a few weeks after the announcement. That gives us time to learn more about what is actually changing, gather reliable information, collect questions, and better understand what could be lost.
People also need a place to vent. They are angry, worried, disappointed, and exhausted from watching progress they fought for disappear. They should not be told to calm down, wait patiently, or search for a silver lining.
But we are not gathering only to vent. We are going to organize, strategize, share information, build relationships, identify opportunities, and determine how we fight back. We will discuss what business owners need from one another, what we expect from corporations and major purchasers, and what we can accomplish together that none of us can accomplish as effectively alone.
Indiana W/MBE Business Owners: What Now?
Wednesday, August 5, 2026
Noon to 1:30 p.m. ET
Zoom
This will not be a webinar or presentation. It will be a community conversation, and you do not need to be a member of The Startup Ladies to attend.
Register for the community conversation.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/indiana-wmbe-business-owners-what-now-a-community-conversation-tickets-1994097732999?aff=oddtdtcreator&keep_tld=true
We have work to do long before the next gubernatorial election. We must vote in every primary, municipal election, midterm election, and general election between now and then. We must support affected businesses, advocate publicly, challenge harmful decisions, register voters, support strong candidates, and hold elected officials accountable.
But put Tuesday, November 7, 2028, on your calendar now.
That is when Indiana will elect its next governor. On that day, we need to vote the racist, sexist bigots and the people who enable them out of office.
Do not forget what happened this week. Do not allow anyone to convince you that elections do not matter or that all candidates are the same. Decisions like this one are what happens when people who resent our progress control the government.
Indiana may dismantle a program, but it does not get to dismantle our businesses, our relationships, our voices, or our collective power.
We are not powerless. We are connected, we are organized, and we are going to fight back.
In solidarity,
Kristen Cooper, CEO and Founder, The Startup Ladies
A space for women and minority business owners to learn, vent, connect, share information, and help shape what comes next.
