***Updates already! Scroll down***
According to our U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), asking minority job applicants of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) to display minimal reading comprehension and reasoning skills is racist.
Because non-whites keep flunking an already watered down written employment examination, DOJ has filed suit against FDNY for discriminatory practices.
An excerpt:
In a 14-page complaint filed in federal court in Brooklyn, attorneys for the Department of Justice alleged that discriminatory hiring practices were rooted in two written tests given to applicants in 1999 and 2002 that, while not purposely or obviously racist, were littered with SAT-like questions that do not test an applicant’s ability to fight fires. The suit seeks an injunction and possible damages.
The two “pass/fail” tests resulted in passing rates for black and Hispanic applicants that were lower than those of white applicants in a statistically significant way, the complaint charges.
We’ve been down this road before.
On this blog, we’ve discussed such “controversial” subjects as blacks scoring lower on standardized tests than whites. I even boldly blogged general intelligence and linked to some of the research. If it’s all new to you, I recommend you read those posts before continuing with this one. (Here’s some background on “disparate impact”)
In New York City Fire Department to Lower Hiring Standards, I told you that FDNY decided to drop certain qualifications in 2006 and intended to water down the written test to recruit more minority applicants.
Tests that measure a job candidate’s ability to reason and comprehend are, in my opinion, more important than people think, and here is where people get it twisted. There is more to fighting fires than merely turning on a hose and pointing. Fire fighters must be able to understand written instructions, directions, and evacuation plans. They must be able to navigate buildings and generally have good spatial abilities. Reasoning skills come in handy when you’re under pressure, trying to save lives.
Evaluating an applicant’s ability to reason well and understand is not racist nor discriminatory. It is a legitimate part of the job, any job, even one as “simple” as putting out a fire.
People, we’re not talking about complex questions. These are simple questions that someone seeking a career in fire fighting ought to know. Here’s a sample question * (keep in mind that applicants study for the test beforehand. It’s not sprung on them out of the blue):
While operating at a fire, Capt. Green, the commander of the Ladder Company 999, was sent by Chief Brown to locate the exact location of the fire. The fire building was two stories in height with a basement. Capt. Green found that the fire was located in one corner at the rear of the basement. The best way for Capt. Green to write this information in a fire report upon returning to the firehouse was as follows:
A) The fire was located on the lower level, in the rear.
B) The fire was located in the southeast corner of the lower level.
C) The fire was located in the southeast corner of the basement.
D) The fire was located in the rear of the basement.
The answer is C, and let’s determine why by using our reasoning skills. Obviously, when writing up a report about a fire, the person should be as specific as he can be. All answer choices are correct, in a sense, but the report must contain an exact location, or as close to it as possible. How in the world is measuring someone’s ability to properly fill out a fire report discriminatory?
Hand-holding, coddling…When my mother does it, I love it. When the government does it, I want to vomit.
I want to take a different approach with this post. I know liberals read this blog. I’d like a few to come out of the shadows and answer some questions. Instead of assuming that you support such lawsuits — that testing someone’s cognitive abilities is racist and the practice should be stopped/changed — I’ll simply ask the questions.
*** For liberals only ***
1) Do you believe that testing cognitive abilities of prospective fire fighters is racist and/or not related to the job of fire fighting?
2) If you believe such testing is acceptable, what do you think FDNY can do to hire more “smart” minorities?
3) If you believe such testing is not acceptable, how do you propose FDNY determine if a prospective fire fighter can comprehend well enough to properly write up fire reports, navigate buildings, understand directions, etc.?
Please tell your like-minded friends about this post, because I’m serious. I’d really like to know what you and they think.
*** For all readers ***
Opinions?
Update: A commenter on the Newsday story wrote:
To say that minorities could not do well in the FDNY tests of 2002 is racist in itself. I am a minority. I took the test. I got a 97. The majority of the test was TOO straightforward, simple reading comprehension on a grade school level. If ANYONE did poorly, the problem lies in the education that they received. I found nothing in the test geared towards caucasians or screening out minorities. “littered with SAT-like questions”??? are you F-ing kidding me??? My dog could pass that test. The scrutiny should be directed towards inner city schools where apparently minorities aren’t being taught the basics in reading comprehension.
And all this controversy about the most recent test having questions about morality and washing dishes, etc… Look at it this way. A firehouse is a family. Lives depend on one another. This is no office job. Attitude in the house is part of the job, as are cooking and cleaning both dishes and life saving equipment. This job is all about sacrifice and trust. Many work for 48 hours straight. If an applicant has the audacity to refuse to wash dishes on a test question, he/she would be a damper on the fire company during a tour. Someone not willing to sacrifice in an everyday setting may not be ready to act in a time where lives are at stake.
John Derbyshire writes: “That these loony-tunes “discrimination” lawsuits are still being launched on your dollar and mine, is a stinking disgrace. That it is happening with the plain approval of a president who once sold himself as conservative, is ironclad proof that Bruce Bartlett has been right all along.”
Two terms of “conservative” President Bush have made me realize I’m more “right wing” than I thought. 
Sources:
- Lawsuit: FDNY discriminates against minority recruits
- New York to the DOJ: Hands Off Our Fire Department
- Heather Mac Donald flames the Bush DOJ
