âIâm Speaking Out:â Calgary Firefighters Allege Decades of Racism
Accusations stretching back 25 years have spurred city officials to acknowledge racism within the department and pledge to address it.
The station where Calgaryâs first Black firefighter, Chris Coy, spent approximately 12 years of his career.Credit.Amber Bracken for The New York Times
Published Feb. 11, 2021Updated Feb. 12, 2021
When Chris Coy became Calgaryâs first Black firefighter 25 years ago, his heroic vision of the profession was almost immediately upended.
First, he said, during training he was hazed more than his colleagues, strapped to a stretcher against his will and repeatedly doused with a fire hose. Then there were the co-workers who ostracized him at lunch. Throughout his career, he said, fellow firefighters used a racial slur directed at Black people.