A report released this Saturday revealed the existence of a culture of institutionalized racism and misogyny at the London Fire Brigadethe largest in the UK.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is “institutionally misogynistic and racist”, and within it prevails “a toxic culture that allows for harassment and abuse”, according to that independent survey conducted by Nazir Afzalformer solicitor in North West England.
The report’s author found “dangerous levels of prejudice against women” and also found that “the barriers faced by people of color speak for themselves.”
Among the other examples of discrimination revealed in the investigations, the case of a black firefighter who discovered a gallows above his locker or a woman whose helmet urinated on her colleagues stands out.
Afzal revealed that ethnic minority firefighters were more likely to suffer disciplinary measuresless opportunity to ascend and they were too less represented in command posts.
‘We also saw evidence that this was driving some away from the brigade and that talented people engaged in public service were being lost as a result,’ the researchers note. Over the course of ten months, Afzal and his team interviewed more than 2,000 people, both firefighters and the general public.
The report, which contains a total of 23 recommendations, was commissioned after the firefighter’s suicide Jaden Francois Espritwho according to his family had been bullied by his peers because of his race.
