New York fire officials are reportedly working to identify the firefighters who heckled Attorney General Letitia James at a promotion ceremony, calling their conduct “grossly inappropriate” and “unacceptable.”
James was at that ceremony to honor Rev. Pamela Holmes, the Fire Department of New York’s first Black woman chaplain. As soon as the attorney general took the podium, several crowd members began booing her and chanting, “Trump! Trump! Trump!” during her remarks.
James remained composed throughout the disturbance, calling for calm and telling audience members to “simmer down.”
“Some may be even booing me, but nonetheless, I pray for them,” James added before exiting the stage.
Following the ceremony, FDNY Chief of Department John Hodgens released a statement saying the commotion “distracted from that celebration” and was an “embarrassment.”
The fallout continued over the weekend after the release of a memo that was reportedly drafted by the Uniformed Firefighters Association and the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, which said the Bureau of Investigations and Trials (BITS) would be “gathering video and identifying members” that discredited the department.
“The behavior we saw and heard was grossly inappropriate. Protesting, heckling, or booing anyone at a ceremony is simply unacceptable. This was not a political event and Letitia James was not there to give a political speech,” one memo said. “Members have a right to political beliefs. But you don’t have a right to make a job-related ceremony political in nature.”
“When you’re not on duty, feel however you want about politicians,” the memo continued. “Vote. Protest. That’s your right. But don’t do it on the job’s time, on other members’ time, or on their families’ time. Do it on your own time.”
Hodgens also drafted an email that was sent to several agency officials saying that “members might not come forward…
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