A volunteer fire company in Pennsylvania was suspended for 30 days after members allegedly made racist comments during a virtual meeting.
The Briarcliffe Fire Company in Darby Township was shut down this week pending an investigation by the district attorney. Several firefighters allegedly used racist terms to describe other members and mocked the name of Fanta Billy, an 8-year-old girl who authorities say was shot by police, officials said during a press conference Thursday.
“I am appalled to have to stand here today and hear about these racist comments. This is not acceptable, we will do anything we have to. It’s not something that just started, it’s been here for years, ” said Councilman Richard Womack Jr.
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Some residents said the remarks made them concerned about how much those tasked with protecting them valued their lives.
“It kind of scares me and bothers me … that they didn’t think our lives were valuable enough. That makes me wonder,” Crystal Hall, a resident, told the Daily Times. “This is really hurtful to hear something like this. It scares me because our lives are on the line.”
The alleged racist remarks made after a Zoom meeting on Jan. 27 were relayed in a letter by another fire company, Goodwill, to the Darby Township Board of Commissioners on Wednesday. The call continued to be recorded even after the meeting ended.
“A bunch of f***ing n*****s down there,” one man allegedly said of the all-Black Darby Township Fire Company in a phone call in which people also discussed moving out of the area due to its growing black population.
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Briarcliffe is one of three fire companies in the township. Officials assured residents that emergency services would not be affected.
The district attorney’s office and the Briarcliffe Fire Company did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s requests for comment.
