Sustained!: Smoldering And Still Burning at HFD

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Smoldering And Still Burning at HFD

The fire at the Houston Fire Department is far from being extinguished. Amid complaints about noose-like knots being found in other Houston fire stations, two women found racist and sexist graffiti near their quarters at a department fire station about a month ago. One woman was named Ena Jane Draycott. Immediately following the disclosure by the women, the Houston Fire Department was on fire with additional complaints of racism and sexism. Today, in an attempt to extinguish the fire, the Houston City Council approved a $190,000 contract with two law firms selected by Mayor Bill White to investigate whether systemic racism and sexism exists in the Houston Fire Department. Astoundingly, the firms selected, Thompson and Horton, L.L.P. and Lemond and Lemond, L.L.C., are both civil defense firms who only represent employers in discrimination cases. In fact, Scott Lemond, one of the principles in Lemond and Lemond, L.L.C., previously served on the city’s civil service board. Both firms have handled city contracts in the past and have close ties to the city officials.

“It just doesn't smell right,” said City Councilwoman Jolanda Jones, who made numerous critiques of the contract before voting against it along with City Councilmen Mike Sullivan and James Rodriguez. Councilwoman Jones argued that there appeared to be nothing “independent” about the city’s investigation and handling of this situation. She protested that this all seemed like a cover up. Councilwoman Jones’ courage and willingness to “speak truth to power” is refreshing. Her opposition to the city’s efforts to conduct business as usual should be SUSTAINED! She is correct. It does not smell “right.” It smells “wrong” because it is wrong. The city’s entire handling of this situation is indicative of politicians seeking appeasement and not solutions. They want to put out the fire without extinguishing the coals. As long as it looks like nothing is burning, they feel confident that the electorate will blindly perceive through the smoke that everything is okay. Such actions are indicative of city leadership failing to take discrimination serious.

Last week, investigators handling the case for the City’s Office of Inspector General sought and obtained a court order to compel one of the women who complained about the racist and sexist graffiti to submit to handwriting exemplars. Judge Susan Brown of the 185th Criminal District Court of Harris County, Texas signed the court order authorizing the taking of Ena Jane Draycott into “temporary custody” for the limited purpose of obtaining handwriting exemplars for comparison. Simply put, the court order authorized city investigators to arrest Ms. Draycott, an alleged victim of sexual harassment, to obtain examples of her handwriting to compare to the writing on the hate material found in the station. This clearly crosses the line. Now, alleged victims of discrimination are being investigated and arrested. Giving the Office of Inspector General this type of authority without a grand jury subpoena or any sworn testimony that there is probable cause that a law has been broken offends the constitution and due process. Such unfettered authority allows the city the ability to openly retaliate against employees who oppose the city and administrators. Predictably, the arrest of such a high profile complainant will have a further chilling effect on reports of discrimination amongst city employees. No one who cherishes their freedom would want to report discrimination if they would face arrest and intense scrutiny for merely reporting a perceived wrong.

But the city is desperate to bring this to an end. It has been reported that firefighters are saying that the incidents and the controversy over the contract have had a bruising impact on the fire department, driving a wedge along racial lines between some firefighters and causing a potentially dangerous atmosphere of distrust between city residents and first responders. This entire situation is jeopardizing public safety. The city might put out the fire and cover things up, but public safety will continue to be jeopardized until the smoldering coals of discrimination are extinguished.

3 comments:

AnonymousAug 18, 2009 04:11 PM
The year of 1920 was the most dramatic Presidential election ever. It was the first time in history that six once and future Presidents jack-eyed for the White house. Leaving American voters choosing between the Wilsonian legacy and his league of naions verses Hardings for isolationist stance to shape modern Americans like no other. Sounds almost like the Matrix " Do you want the red or the blue pill?" Wilsonian with the right of national self-determination for all people and Harding a place privledged by Grant. The Rebublicans out spent the Democrats by 4 to 1 and this election was the first to generate extensive news reel coverage. It also was the first election that all WOMEN could vote and have broadcast on radio. The 1920 census revealed that America had become a Urban nation. It was a year declared to have cracked the emerge in the once solid "Jim Crow" system while the KKK incited hate against the catholics,blacks and Jews. I don't think the KKK agreed with the catholic's simply because the ideals of their techniques. To the white supremist nothing from the African man's essense was a value to presevre or attain. To them it was a discourse in a era that needed to completely be destroyed. This presidential election reminds me of a book by Harvey Fireside called Seperate and Unequal. Homer A. Plessy, a light skinned New Orleans shoe maker of African linage boarded a whites only rail road coach. He volunteered it to the conductor who ordered him to move the "Jim Crow" car aside by State law for American Negros. Plessy refused and was quickly arrested and charged with violating Louisiana law. As chronicled by acclaimed civil rights Historian Harvery Fireside, Plessy's defiance led to one of the most pivotal civil rights cases in American history. It also led to one of the Supreme Courts most tradgic decisions. It was a case that began with a simple act of Civil disobedience that Plessy had hoped would have raised of forceful challenge by local people of color for the South's entire system. He hoped by offering himself up to be detained for prosecution for civil disobedience that his people would be empowerered to move in a fourth-coming direction. It took years of denying constitutional interpretations under the fourteenth ammendment before Warren Court over turned Plessy in 1954. It took another decade to begin enforcement of desegregation in the South.
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StinskySep 26, 2009 04:06 PM
I find it hilarious that politicians are upset about people not being fired immediately due to problems at HFD. I can recall one firefighter, who fired after a month of being AWOL, was rehired at the behest of a congresswoman. The mean good ol' boys fired him for not showing up to work and not contacting his superior officers. He's been fired again. This time after being caught molesting a 15 year old boy.
Why you think that Draycott should be immune to investigation is beyond me. It's this sort of attitude that permits people to get away with hoaxes. Everyone with access to that station is a suspect. Your bizarre idea that doing a thorough investigation is uncalled for isn't based on special knowledge, but on a knee-jerk reaction. You ever work with Draycott? You do even the slightest bit of research on her before coming up with an opinion? You know nothing. You've assumed that simply because someone's claimed someone else did something that it's cut and dried. I've see too many problem children who show up to work late repeatedly, don't do the job and yet don't get fired because they're in with someone outside the fire department--and we're not talking about one single race, either. So how about the educated start acting like it: Quit. Jumping. To. Conclusions.
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AnonymousApr 21, 2010 08:01 PM
I completely agree with Stinksy. Has anyone looked into Draycott's past history of any harrassment allegations at previous employment at a different fire station in a different city in Texas approx 10 years ago? Just because she's crying wolf doesn't mean she's innocent. Talk to previous co-workers and get their take on her work ethics.
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