DORAL, Fla. — A Miami-Dade Fire Rescue official is pushing back on concerns about diversity within the agency’s ranks.
The NAACP had raised concerns over what it said was an apparent lack of Black firefighters in Recruit Class 159.
The organization claimed only one Black recruit was in the class ― but MDFR officials said at a meeting Monday night that it had three.
MDFR Capt. Charles Francois, who leads the agency’s professional standards division, spoke with Local 10 News on Tuesday and said, “I don’t think there’s a diversity issue.”
“I don’t think it’s accurate,” he said of the concerns. “Our workforce is extremely diverse and we make sure it’s reflective of the community we serve.”
Francois said the agency actually has a slightly higher proportion of Black staff ― 18% ― compared to Miami-Dade’s population as a whole: 16%.
He said the agency’s firefighters are 68% Hispanic and 10% white compared to the county’s overall population of 70% and 13%, respectively.
He said MDFR, additionally, is well above average for women in the ranks: 14%, compared to a national average of 5%.
Francois said diversity is important in the agency’s ranks.
“One of the key characteristics of a firefighter is empathy and I think if you can have a department that’s diverse, then you can better empathize with the citizens that you’re going to be serving,” he said. “We listen when the community speaks and we’re working to expand on what we’re already doing with our outreach efforts.”
Following Monday night’s meeting, a representative from the NAACP said the organization believes more could be done.
“It was a good start for the NAACP Miami-Dade branch to hear from the community and also to be able to coordinate a meeting with leadership for Miami-Dade Fire Rescue,” Daniella Pierre, the branch president, said. “I believe we have a lot of takeaways, but we also have much greater work to do.”
Local 10 News requested a copy of the paperwork to back up the agency’s statistical claims.
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