Black pickets support New Haven firefighters

April 12, 2002

By MEG BARONE Correspondent

NEW HAVEN -- Black firefighters from as far away as Buffalo, N.Y., stood on the steps of City Hall Thursday to demand the reinstatement of two local fire department veterans.

The two firefighters, John Brantley and Sheryl Broadnax, were fired in February from the department. Both were plaintiffs in a lawsuit alleging improper promotions and discrimination in the department.

About 60 firefighters Thursday carried signs and chanted, "No justice, no peace." Brantley and Broadnax had been accused of violating a department rule by copying a personnel file without authorization.

Later, firefighters delivered a letter to Mayor John DeStefano Jr.'s secretary, calling for an impartial review of the case.

Brantley and Broadnax are 19-year veterans of the New Haven Fire Department and members of the Firebird Society, a fraternal group of African-American firefighters.

Brantley said he said he was copying the file with the permission of an acting deputy chief. "I was doing my job. Look at my career and look at what I've accomplished," he said.

The protest drew firefighters from nearby communities, including Bridgeport. Some local protesters said the mayor and the Rev. Boise Kimber, a recent appointment to the Board of Fire Commissioners, had singled out Brantley and Broadnax.

They were among six plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit accusing the department of discrimination and unfair hiring. A federal judge found merit in their claims of illegal promotion practices in March, said Donald Day, assistant director of the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters.

Day suggested an investigation into Kimber's background.

Kimber, who is black, was appointed to the commission shortly before Brantley and Broadnax's hearing and was named chairman of the board.

Kimber stood along Church Street watching the protest but refused to discuss it. "I was just passing by," Kimber said.

Ron Benson, president of the New Haven Firebird Society, said black firefighters are often treated differently and disciplined differently than their white counterparts.

"We feel we have to show support for both who were unfairly let go," said Paul Washington, president of the New York City black firefighters' Vulcan Society.