Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Company and the Lilly Foundation have announced a five-year, $25 million commitment in support of efforts to combat racial injustice.

Announced in conjunction with the International Lilly Day of Solidarity event, held virtually this past weekend in partnership with the area’s largest minority and African-American-owned media outlets, the investment will support efforts in Indianapolis, regionally, and nationally to develop and support effective solutions to racial inequity and social injustice. The company also is committing twenty-five thousand employee volunteer service hours to help fight racial injustice and will make grants to improve educational, health, criminal justice, and social mobility outcomes for people of color.

"Lilly and the Lilly Foundation have a long history of standing beside our neighbors and communities," said Lilly Foundation president Tiffany Benjamin. "We are committed to action in addressing the systemic injustices in America that disadvantage people of color every day, with a special responsibility to Indianapolis, home of our headquarters for a hundred and forty-four years. As with our ongoing response to COVID-19, we're confronting these injustices with the full force of our capabilities."