This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Crime & Safety

'There Is An Undercurrent Of Racism'

Norwalk fire inspector files complaint of discrimination.

After losing out for a job within the last February, Broderick Sawyer, an African-American fire inspector, filed a discrimination complaint last month with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Sawyer, who has been with the department since 2001, was beaten out by Chris Hansen, who is white, for the deputy fire marshal's position.

"What I'm saying, based on hiring, promotion, and discipline of the department, there is something there," Sawyer told Patch. "And if you look at what've I've looked at, there is an undercurrent of racism. The actions could be racism. What else can I say?"

Find out what's happening in Norwalkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Sawyer, 54, admits he might have a difficult time proving that racism exists within the fire department, but said he wasn't dealt fairly with when it came to the examination that helped determine who was going to get the deputy fire marshal's position last February. The test is made up of three components: written, oral and seniority. Broderick had seniority over his competitor and colleague, Hansen, and scored an 83 on his written test, Hansen received a 74. Broderick, who said he studied hard and knew the material extremely well, scored just a 63 on the oral portion of the exam.

"I've been African-American for a long time," Sawyer said. "I've been black, a negro, but I'm an American. When I do everything I can by your rules, and I get screwed on an oral  interview? And I'm up 14 points on the guy, there is no way (Hansen could've beaten him)."

Find out what's happening in Norwalkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

deferred all questions to M. Jeffry Spahr, deputy corporation counsel for the . Spahr said the test was fair and there was nothing sinister going on.

"It's like a football game," Spahr said. "A team can be leading going into the fourth quarter, but they still can get beat. You have to play all four quarters. The position of the fire department is that it was a fair, balanced, and unbiased test that was administered by a third party."

The panel for the oral exam consisted of two white males and one African-American woman. Sawyer told Patch that one of the gentlemen on the panel sitting to his right was recorded on tape saying that Sawyer was "poised and confident, but spoke too fast."

Spahr said that Sawyer scored a 58 on the oral examine for a lieutenant's position that was recently open and feels that portion of the test might be Sawyer's "Achilles Heel." He reiterated that the oral portion of the test was administered by a third party and no one on the panel was employed or had anything to do with the Norwalk Fire Department.

Sawyer also feels that Hansen was given the job because he too, had filed a complaint for being unfairly passed over for a job two years ago, and the department pacified him so he wouldn't take legal action.

Asked what he was hoping to accomplish with his complaint, Sawyer said that he wanted to ensure fair testing, make fire code safety a priority, and he'd like a new job title.

"I want to be deputy fire marshal of code enforcement, retroactive to February 15, 2011," he said. "That would change the whole game. And if you want to throw in a kicker, like $100,000 for my pain and suffering and for what you put my family through...."

When told of his ambitions, Spahr said that wasn't going to happen, "No, it's not. We gave a fair, balanced, objective, and impartial test administered by a third party. In this economic climate, we're not just going to create jobs to avoid litigation."

Sawyer stated that he's also been the victim of harassment by the fire department. In April of 2010, a paper plate with the writing, "You da man," was left on his desk after he asked for a performance evaluation. In addition, Sawyer said someone also put a baby's pacifier on his desk, "When it's done in the fire house, it's funny," said Sawyer. "When it's done in the fire marshal's office, it's not cool."

Added Spahr, "We don't feel that he has an adequate case for racism and retaliation against the fire department. The test was fair." 

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.