Tweet
Indy Fire Merger Raises Diversity Concerns
Some worry incoming firefighters will thwart efforts at the Indianapolis Fire Department.
Story by theindychannel.com
..INDIANAPOLIS
--
The Indianapolis Fire Department is facing questions about how it plans to maintain diversity while absorbing several surrounding departments.
Franklin Township on Thursday became the fourth township to merge with IFD since 2007, bringing 92 firefighters into the fold, 6News' Derrik Thomas reported.
But some have raised concerns about the lack of diversity in several of the townships set to join the city department.
In Franklin Township, 82 of the firefighters are white men, four are African-American men, one is a Hispanic man and four are white women.
"We're marching back in time, as opposed to pressing forward, which is not a good attribute for a so-called world-class city," said IFD Lt. Brian White, who is African-American and a 19-year veteran. "The city is not homogeneous with regards to race, therefore why shouldn't its police and fire department be represented across the board in a fair and equitable fashion?"
Current numbers show white men make up 79 percent of IFD, while African-American men make up 14.4 percent and white women make up 4.4 percent.
IFD spokeswoman Capt. Rita Burris said the department plans to aggressively recruit minorities going forward as the mergers continue.
"It's not an easy fix. We can't change the demographics on the individual townships," she said. "We welcome them into our department, but it's something we are addressing and looking forward to fixing."
Three or four more township departments are expected to merge with IFD.
The NAACP filed suit against the city last year questioning hiring and promotion practices of both the fire and police departments.
Copyright 2010 by
TheIndyChannel.com
All rights reserved.
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Same BS everywhere I guess.
Funny how "judged on the content of their character, not the color of their skin" doesn't seem to carry the same tune anymore.
The demographics inside the City of Memphis is 33% white, with most areas of the city being below 20%. That makes white people the minority and therefore there, you would think that there would be opposite affirmitive action put into place, but somehow diversity doesn't seem to include white people.
**** My original demographic info was only for 1 zip code in Memphis, not the entire city. I have made the necessary changes.
Some worry incoming firefighters will thwart efforts at the Indianapolis Fire Department.
Story by theindychannel.com
..INDIANAPOLIS
--
The Indianapolis Fire Department is facing questions about how it plans to maintain diversity while absorbing several surrounding departments.
Franklin Township on Thursday became the fourth township to merge with IFD since 2007, bringing 92 firefighters into the fold, 6News' Derrik Thomas reported.
But some have raised concerns about the lack of diversity in several of the townships set to join the city department.
In Franklin Township, 82 of the firefighters are white men, four are African-American men, one is a Hispanic man and four are white women.
"We're marching back in time, as opposed to pressing forward, which is not a good attribute for a so-called world-class city," said IFD Lt. Brian White, who is African-American and a 19-year veteran. "The city is not homogeneous with regards to race, therefore why shouldn't its police and fire department be represented across the board in a fair and equitable fashion?"
Current numbers show white men make up 79 percent of IFD, while African-American men make up 14.4 percent and white women make up 4.4 percent.
IFD spokeswoman Capt. Rita Burris said the department plans to aggressively recruit minorities going forward as the mergers continue.
"It's not an easy fix. We can't change the demographics on the individual townships," she said. "We welcome them into our department, but it's something we are addressing and looking forward to fixing."
Three or four more township departments are expected to merge with IFD.
The NAACP filed suit against the city last year questioning hiring and promotion practices of both the fire and police departments.
Copyright 2010 by
TheIndyChannel.com
All rights reserved.
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Same BS everywhere I guess.
Funny how "judged on the content of their character, not the color of their skin" doesn't seem to carry the same tune anymore.
The demographics inside the City of Memphis is 33% white, with most areas of the city being below 20%. That makes white people the minority and therefore there, you would think that there would be opposite affirmitive action put into place, but somehow diversity doesn't seem to include white people.
**** My original demographic info was only for 1 zip code in Memphis, not the entire city. I have made the necessary changes.
I am not, in any way, taking a slap at anyone, rather I'm pointing out that the DESIRE to be a Firefighter is more important that Class Status..... There are Members of minority Classes out there who really want to be Firefighters, and I back them 100%. But why are Recruiters wandering thru Shopping Malls and Sports Arenas looking for Candidates for the FD (or VFD, no difference) when people voluntarily contact these FD's HR Offices every day, asking about Testing, etc........ Waste of Time AND MONEY. 
Comment