Garaufis, whose rulings forced the FDNY to overhaul its recruiting practices, called the department “a stubborn bastion of white male privilege” whose recruiting roadblocks are a “shameful blight on the record of six mayors.”īigotry – against Blacks, Latinos, women and gay people in small and big ways – is tolerated in the firehouse workplace. The FDNY’s rank and file has never resembled the communities it serves. His appointment of five women as deputy mayors, a Black woman as police commissioner, a Black man as schools chancellor, and Latinx leaders to other top positions is a level of diversity that was unimaginable just a few years ago. To his credit, the mayor has embraced the opportunity to make history. And that message is, women and people of color in senior leadership roles is normal – even expected – and the good old boy’s networks are destined to fall. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin presiding over the American military sends a message. Confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson send a message. He also understands the moment is ripe to chip away at the ridiculous idea minority candidates are manifestly unqualified.Īdams’ election sent a message. Fire department diversity is an issue in cities and counties across the United States, but the situation in the FDNY is by far the worst. The mayor understands the magnitude of the problem. She is reportedly a top contender for the job, along with Terryl Brown, the FDNY’s top lawyer and a Black woman. The city needs moral leadership – preferably a person of color or woman FDNY commissioner – that will course-correct the department with an unwavering commitment to do what is right.įirst Deputy Commissioner Laura Kavanagh, named interim commissioner, became the department’s first woman leader after Commissioner Daniel Nigro retired last month. This is the history that Mayor Eric Adams has an obligation to topple as he launches his search for a new FDNY commissioner. It is city government’s last bastion of white privilege.įor 157 years, the top rungs of the FDNY have been dominated by White men who practically thumbed their noses at protesters, lawsuits, consent decrees, minority recruitment programs and discrimination lawsuit settlements funded by New York City taxpayers. It is the city agency most closely identified with years-long resistance to political pressure and court orders to desegregate its ranks. The New York City Fire Department’s halls of power are haunted by racism. March 31st, 2022 Mayor Adams Must Reform Bias That Still Haunts FDNY David R.
0 kommentar(er)
