A New Haven Register Editorial

June 03, 2002

Boise Kimber may be the most apologetic man in New Haven today. He ought to be. Mayor John DeStefano Jr. went out on a limb when he first named him to the fire commission and then pushed through his election in February as chairman of the fire board.

The mayor did it because he thought the Rev. Kimber was the right man for the job despite his 1996 felony conviction for stealing money from an elderly woman's burial account. Now the brash, political pastor from Newhallville has put his foot in his mouth and his short career as a fire commissioner is on the line. Kimber can lay down the law on wearing the proper uniform or unjustified absences from work. But, he has to do it with respect and tact. Instead, a comment he claims was meant as a joke has been taken as blatant discrimination against Italian Americans. The fire union president and other firefighters are demanding his resignation. Kimber should have known better. He told firefighters that "too many people with vowels in their names" might not be hired. It is the type of off-handed comment that he and other African American leaders have seized on as evidence of bias. The fire board chairman has already managed to alienate some black firefighters with the dismissal of two black firefighters in February. His effectiveness will be crippled if his actions and comments alienate most of the department. Kimber's apology is sincere. It was a product of his diligent effort to get to know the firefighters and their problems. He will be explaining himself for weeks to come to city officials investigating the comment and to a panel of past and current fire commissioners and firefighters set up by the mayor to discuss the controversy. The fire board chairman will have to alter his own conduct. There will be no more solo, late night visits to firehouses. Fire Chief Dennis Daniels, or another appropriate fire official, should accompany Kimber when he makes his tours. The mayor wanted a strong board chairman to deal with a number of troubling issues within the fire department. But Kimber is not the chief. Kimber is walking through a minefield as chairman of the fire board. The volume of the criticism is out of proportion to the remark. It reflects a continuing struggle to unite the department and run it efficiently. So far Kimber has been a quick and energetic learner. We believe he will learn from this mistake and become a better, even stronger commissioner. If not, his tenure on the fire board will be short.

©New Haven Register 2002