Jeff Caynon is president of the Houston Professional Firefighters Association. While the police department has aggressively diversified for more than a decade and taught diversity at the police academy much longer,  the Houston Fire Department’s progress has been painfully  slow. A recent Houston Chronicle  story highlights the problems.
 The city now has about 4,200 firefighters and paramedics. Only about 700 are African-American.  Based on the fire department’s 2007 figures, slightly more are Hispanic (720), with 26 Asian/Pacific Islanders,  8 Native Americans, and 100  women.  As you may know, seven Black firefighters are suing the city. They claim the written multiple-choice test, which accounts for 100 of  an officer’s 122 promotion points, represents “systemic discrimination” against African-Americans. They contend that “Selection rates for African-Americans are abysmally smaller than for White candidates.”  Before  a 2005 collective bargaining agreement, the test for promotions to  captain or higher accounted for 100 of 110 points, a system still used for lower-level promotions.
The lawsuit may spur the fire department to pick up the pace of change:

1. The city must determine if the multiple-choice test does indeed discriminate against African-Americans and other minorities. 

2.  The city must review the validity of the test itself. Do right answers equate to good firefighters?

Houston has been blessed with an outstanding fire department, full of dedicated men and women who risk their lives for little money to serve the public.  Their  on/off  schedules can disrupt family life.   Chief Phil Boriskie has done an outstanding job moving the department forward.  Diversity is just as important in HFD  as it is in HPD. Like police officers, firefighters make split-second life and death decisions while dealing with Houston’s incredibly diverse population.  A firefighter’s  ability to calm down a frantic  mother trying to remember which room her child was playing in, could hinge on the firefighter’s and mother’s shared ethnicity, language or gender.  A fire, police, or sheriff’s department improves every time a qualified officer from  an under-represented group is added to the roster.
The Houston Firefighters Union is certainly doing its part to add to the roster.  A year ago  something happened many firefighters never thought they would see  an African-American was elected president of the firefighters union.  As 2008 union president, veteran Jeff Caynon has pledged to make better pay a top priority as the union prepares for a new city contract.
As an at-large city council member, I publicly complained about the lack of diversity in the Houston Fire Department.  I happened to know the department’s first female firefighter,  a real trailblazer. Unfortunately, after years of being sidelined in non-firefighting roles, she made the painful decision to leave the profession.  The department now has two female captains out of about 60. 
HPD’s Strategic Plan includes numerous goals. The fifth goal is “Embrace diversity.”  The plan outlines detailed steps for the Recruiting Division, including recruiting outings with pastors and community leaders, a written minority outreach strategy, better media, and, finally, “sensitivity awareness” for all officers.
 We must encourage our sons and daughters to embrace firefighting as a career. Our public service officers are truly everyday heroes.
Annise Parker is Houston City Controller. She recently announced her candidacy for Houston Mayor.