Black Firefighters and the FDNY

Black Firefighters and the FDNY PDF Author: David Goldberg
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469633639
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 422

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Book Description
For many African Americans, getting a public sector job has historically been one of the few paths to the financial stability of the middle class, and in New York City, few such jobs were as sought-after as positions in the fire department (FDNY). For over a century, generations of Black New Yorkers have fought to gain access to and equal opportunity within the FDNY. Tracing this struggle for jobs and justice from 1898 to the present, David Goldberg details the ways each generation of firefighters confronted overt and institutionalized racism. An important chapter in the histories of both Black social movements and independent workplace organizing, this book demonstrates how Black firefighters in New York helped to create affirmative action from the "bottom up," while simultaneously revealing how white resistance to these efforts shaped white working-class conservatism and myths of American meritocracy. Full of colorful characters and rousing stories drawn from oral histories, discrimination suits, and the archives of the Vulcan Society (the fraternal society of Black firefighters in New York), this book sheds new light on the impact of Black firefighters in the fight for civil rights.

Black Firefighters and the FDNY

Black Firefighters and the FDNY PDF Author: David Goldberg
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469633639
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 422

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Book Description
For many African Americans, getting a public sector job has historically been one of the few paths to the financial stability of the middle class, and in New York City, few such jobs were as sought-after as positions in the fire department (FDNY). For over a century, generations of Black New Yorkers have fought to gain access to and equal opportunity within the FDNY. Tracing this struggle for jobs and justice from 1898 to the present, David Goldberg details the ways each generation of firefighters confronted overt and institutionalized racism. An important chapter in the histories of both Black social movements and independent workplace organizing, this book demonstrates how Black firefighters in New York helped to create affirmative action from the "bottom up," while simultaneously revealing how white resistance to these efforts shaped white working-class conservatism and myths of American meritocracy. Full of colorful characters and rousing stories drawn from oral histories, discrimination suits, and the archives of the Vulcan Society (the fraternal society of Black firefighters in New York), this book sheds new light on the impact of Black firefighters in the fight for civil rights.

Triumph

Triumph PDF Author: Floyd Jordan
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 147710268X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 305

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Book Description
Triumph is the story of my journey through the fire service and has been a dream of mine since I was promoted to the rank of fire lieutenant in 1974. Writing this story and reliving many events was painful, such as the blatant racism and disrespect experienced on duty the day Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee; and when the firefighters union expelled all the black firefighters from membership when they refused to disband their association as members of the Black Firefighters association; and "Scrotum on the head", the worst scandal in the Miami Fire Department's history, are a few of the most important stories revealed in my book. But this story is not just about pain; it is also about the joy of triumphing over the obstacles and barriers that were endemic for trailblazing black firefighters from the mid 1960's and beyond.

Black Firefighters and the FDNY

Black Firefighters and the FDNY PDF Author: David A. Goldberg
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description


Molly, by Golly!

Molly, by Golly! PDF Author: Dianne Ochiltree
Publisher: Astra Publishing House
ISBN: 1635924375
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 34

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Book Description
Here is the story of Molly Williams, an African American cook for New York City's Fire Company 11 who is considered to be the first known female firefighter in U.S. history. New York City’s Fire Company Number 11 is in trouble. A deadly snowstorm is blowing, and many of the volunteers are sick in bed. When the fire alarm sounds, who will answer the call? Who will save the neighborhood? Molly Williams, the company’s cook, for one! Clapping a weathered leather helmet on her head, strapping spatterdashes over her woolen leggings, and pulling on heavy work gloves —it’s Molly, by golly, to the rescue. Young readers will enjoy plucky Molly Williams’s legendary adventure as they learn how fires were fought in the early 1800s.

Firefight

Firefight PDF Author: Ginger Adams Otis
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1466879335
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 263

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Book Description
In 1919, when Wesley Williams became a New York City firefighter, he stepped into a world that was 100% white and predominantly Irish. As far as this city knew, black men in the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) tended horses. Nearly a century later, many things in the FDNY had changed—but not the scarcity of blacks. New York had about 300 black firefighters—roughly 3 percent of the 11,000 New York firefighters in a city of two million African Americans. That made the FDNY a true aberration compared to all the other uniformed departments, like the NYPD. Decades earlier, women and blacks had sued over its hiring practices and won. But the FDNY never took permanent steps to eradicate the inequities, which led to a courtroom show-down between New York City's billionaire Mayor, Mike Bloomberg, and a determined group of black activist firefighters. It was not until 2014 that the city settled the $98 million lawsuit. At the center of this book are stories of courage—about firefighters risking their lives in the line of duty but also risking their livelihood by battling an unjust system. Among them: FDNY Captain Paul Washington, a second generation black firefighter, who spent his multi-decade career fighting to get minorities on the job. He faced an insular culture made up of relatives who never saw their own inclusion as favoritism. Based on author Ginger Adams Otis' years of on the ground reporting, Firefight is an exciting blend of the high-octane energy of firefighting and critical Civil Rights history.

My Real Black Fire

My Real Black Fire PDF Author: Ret. Lt. William "Bill" High FDNY 1962-1980
Publisher: Fulton Books, Inc.
ISBN: 1639858407
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 151

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Book Description
MY JOURNEY THROUGH THE "FDNY" THE NEW YORK CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT IN THE 1960'S AND 70'S WILL EXPOSE MUCH OF WHAT I HAVE WITNESSED. THE MANY HEROIC DEEDS, THE HISTORIC SYSTEMATIC CULTURAL RACISM, THE ETHNIC FAVORITISM, THE ACCEPTED GLORIFIED EMBELLISHMENTS, AND THE INDIFFERENCE THAT PREVAILED IN SOMANY OF THE BLACK COMMUNITIES DURING THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT OF THAT TIME. I NEVER ALLOWED MY FIREFIGHTER'S LIFE'S PURPOSE TO CONSIDER ONE'S GENDER, COLOR OR RELIGION TO PREVENT ME FROM STEPPING IN HARM'S DEADLY PATH, IN THE PRESERVATION OF A LIFE UNKNOWN TO ME. LT. BILL HIGH.., FDNY

Firefight

Firefight PDF Author: Ginger Adams Otis
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1137280018
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
As police and fire departments still struggle with integration across the US, the powerful story of the black men who fought for a place in the FDNY

Last Man Down

Last Man Down PDF Author: Richard Picciotto
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101220759
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
A first responder’s harrowing account of 9/11—the inspirational true story of an American hero who gave nearly everything for others during one of New York City’s darkest hours. On September 11, 2001, FDNY Battalion Chief Richard “Pitch” Picciotto answered the call heard around the world. In minutes, he was at Ground Zero of the worst terrorist attack on American soil, as the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center began to burn—and then to buckle. A veteran of the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, Picciotto was eerily familiar with the inside of the North Tower. And it was there that he concentrated his rescue efforts. It was in its smoky stairwells where he heard and felt the South Tower collapse. He made the call for firemen and rescue workers to evacuate, while he stayed behind with a skeleton team of men to help evacuate a group of disabled and infirm civilians. And it was in the rubble of the North Tower where Picciotto found himself buried—for more than four hours after the building’s collapse.

Fdny 150

Fdny 150 PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780986271908
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
FDNY 150 Celebrating the Past, Present and Future

Courage Under Fire

Courage Under Fire PDF Author: David A. Goldberg
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : African American fire fighters
Languages : en
Pages : 770

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Book Description
"This dissertation examines the struggle for racial equality in urban fire departments from the late 19th century to the present. The first half contains extensive case studies of Black experiences in the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) and Baltimore City Fire Department (BFD). Particular emphasis is given to the process of Black inclusion, day-to-day and institutional race relations, and the backgrounds and experiences of Black firefighters in each fire department. The activities of local branches of national civil rights organizations such as the National Urban League and the NAACP, as well as the involvement of local Black political leaders in the struggle for Black inclusion and equal opportunity are chronicled, as are the activities of the Vulcan Society in New York and the Social Association of Fire Fighters in Baltimore. The second half of the dissertation explores the nationalization of the struggle for equal employment opportunity within the urban fire service. The 1970 formation of the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters (IABPFF), its relationship to the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), and the struggle for 'community control' and Black representation within urban fire departments as well as the impact of Title VII, the Civil Rights Movement, the Black Caucus and Black Power movements, and urban rebellions on the organization's formation and objectives are examined. The evolution, implementation, limitations, and strengths of equal opportunity litigation and remedial relief programs as applied to urban fire departments, the activities of Black firefighters' organizations, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), municipal governments, the Department of Justice, and the federal courts during the course of fire department litigation are also documented and analyzed.".