Indiana

Demographics and Demagogues

By Abdul Hakim-Shabazz

Anyone who reads this blog knows I am a big believer in government consolidation, particularly when it comes to public safety.   I have supported fire consolidation when Bart Peterson was Mayor of Indianapolis,  I support it now that Greg Ballard is Mayor and I will support it regardless of who the next mayor is.

What I think is ironic is that some of the people who were strong advocates of consolidating the Indianapolis Fire Department with the township fire departments have suddenly had concerns about “diversity” and the racial make up of the department.    Call me crazy, but in an inferno I have a hard time making out the race of the firefighter through the flames and thick smoke.

What critics say is that as IFD continues to consolidate it becomes less diverse because there are fewer minority firefighters in the townships.  They argue that the percentage of minority firefighters should reflect the numbers in the city which is about 20-25%.  The problem with playing the numbers game is that it’s a double-edged sword.

For example IFD, post Lawrence Township merger, is 84% white and 14% black.  That number may seem small, however, when you look at the command structure, I could argue blacks are over-represented.  50% of the assistant chiefs are black.  66% of the division chiefs are black.  42% of IFD’s captains are black.  And 40% of the lieutenants are black.    So while critics argue consolidation dilutes minority representation on the fire department, they say nothing about how minorities are “overrepresented” in IFD’s command structure.

Of course this is a ridiculous statement to make, but that’s the problem when you start playing a pure numbers game; you go from the sublime to the ridiculous.   The city should strive for diversity in its ranks, but when all you look at is numbers, you’re asking for trouble.

Speaking of numbers,  blacks make up 27% of the City-County Council and 53% of the Democratic caucus.   If we’re going to play the numbers game it’s clear to see they are over-represented on the Council as well as the caucus.  So who should give up their seat so we have proportionate representation?  Where should I begin?

Full post as published by Indiana Barrister on October 06, 2010 (boomark / email).