White FDNY Hopefuls: Black Firefighters Kept Us Out of Meeting

By
We may earn a commission from links on this page.

A group of white men are claiming that a group of black firefighters prevented from attending a tutorial for the New York City Fire Department exam, according to the New York Post. The Vulcan Society, an organization of New York black firefighters, held a workshop in a Queens middle school for the controversial FDNY entrance exam.

"This is absurd," said Rob, a 21-year-old who was one of about 60 whites refused entry, to the New York Post. "My dad [a firefighter] was killed on 9/11. I always wanted to be FDNY," he said.

A member of the Vulcan Society who chose to remain unidentified told the New York Post that the white firefighters were incorrect in assuming race was the reason for the denied entry. "I wanted everyone to get in, but we don't have the resources for the amount of people who showed up," he said. "I understand guys were upset, but then they got a little rowdy." The angry response from the men denied admission drew 30 police officers and school safety officers.

Advertisement

Last year the Vulcan Society and the U.S. Department of Justice won a lawsuit against the city of New York and the FDNY after a federal judge ruled that the department's hiring practices were discriminatory; the judge also ordered reforms.

Read more at the New York Post.

Like The Root on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.