Mayor Domenic Sarno City of Springfield 36 Court Street Springfield, MA 01103 November 19, 2012 Re: Proposed Fire

Commissioner Ordinance Change Dear Mayor Sarno,

From the end of the Civil War up until the middle of the 20th century, discrimination in many forms was a pillar of the American way of life. No laws protected racial minorities and women from biased employers, who were free to pass over a black worker in favor of a white worker or to reserve better paying jobs for white men only. Women were even barred by law from various jobs and professions. The modern day civil rights movement that began officially with the founding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909 culminated in the U.S. Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education decision of 1954, which declared racially segregated public schools unconstitutional. Ten years later, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the first truly effective law enacted since Reconstruction. Title VII of that law prohibits employment discrimination, in both the public and private sectors, based on race, gender, national origin or religion. The Act opened a new era in the pursuit of equal opportunity by allowing legal challenges, on the federal and state levels, to entrenched patterns of discrimination. The history of the Springfield Fire Department is a picture perfect example of this type of structural and institutional racism. This notion is borne out by the fact that it took federal intervention to correct discriminatory practices in this public institution. The City of Springfield is among the few cities and towns in Massachusetts still subject to a federal consent decree regarding minority hiring within both its police and fire departments. While some are fond of calling this a quota system," this assertion distorts the reality of the purpose of taking race and sex into account as a legal remedy for specific cases of discriminatory exclusion. For far too long Springfield has done little to voluntarily provide compensatory opportunities to members of groups disadvantaged by discrimination. It is with this in mind that I am particularly appalled by and write in opposition to
P.O. Box 90163 Springfield, MA 01139 (413) 650-6154

dumbing down the required qualifications for the position of fire commissioner. Far too often, member of the majority community have enjoyed the privilege of unearned advantages, which has a negative impact on our society. Every week, our branch along with others across the nation, receive complaints from communities of color, women, the disabled, and others that face real, overt discrimination, along with structural inequalities through many or perhaps all stages of their lives. These inequalities hamper their ability to seek higher education, compete in the job market and advance in other fields of endeavor. We have consistently regarded education as the great equalizer. Every individual, regardless of his or her circumstance, should be able to attain the American Dream through education. While this belief has not always been implemented throughout our history, there are individuals that have overcome obstacles and their circumstances through education to become productive citizens and trailblazers. Therefore, qualifications matter. In our free market and free society people are constantly working on maintaining and improving their qualifications in a particular or varied number of fields. This is why people go to college, work hard, seek apprenticeships, and start their own businesses. Its why people stay on jobs and improve their performance in order to advance their circumstances. This striving for excellence and the acquisition of as many qualifications as possible is not only good for an individual but for society as a whole; the more qualified contributing members of society there are undoubtedly benefits all. So, why would we even consider lowering the qualifications for the leader of our citys fire department? Why would we not do a national search to ascertain the best-qualified candidate? The answer is simpleprivilege and preference. This decision smacks of nepotism and sends the wrong message to the entire city. What message does watering down the requirements for the sake of a single preferred candidate send to the rank and file within the fire department, our youth, and city residents? Will people view this policy as a reason to focus less on academic achievement and qualifications and more on posturing for political favors when seeking city employment? Will the rules be changed to accommodate candidates of color competing for high-level positions within the city, which they do not meet the qualifications for? In essence, there should be no reason to lower qualifications so drastically to the benefit of one individual and the detriment of the city as a whole. It sends the WRONG MESSAGE! At a time when our city needs all of its youth excelling academically to reclaim our position as a leading city in New England, we cannot afford to continue policies, which smack of political favoritism and give the perception of blatant cronyism. In our research, we found that the qualifications noted by similar sized cities for the leaders of their fire departments were bachelors degrees with appropriate majors and years of

experience at the administrative level. To reduce the qualifications of the head of Springfields fire department to an associates degree and two years of experience at the deputy chief level is a disservice to our city. Respectfully Springfield Branch NAACP Rev. Talbert W. Swan, II, President cc: Springfield City Council