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January 13, 2005
Black cops call on vets to
drum up recruits
Jeremy Schwab
When a federal judge struck down the Boston Police Department’s
affirmative action hiring policy in November, ruling that the
department had achieved racial parity, Boston Police Commissioner
Kathleen O’Toole promised to find ways to maintain diversity
on the force.
But activists in communities of color refused to
pin all their hopes on O’Toole’s good intentions.
Veterans’ advocates and black police officers recently launched
a campaign to encourage veterans to take the civil service exam
on April 30 in order to qualify for the force.
Activists say it is critical for veterans of color
to apply because veterans and children of officers killed in the
line of duty receive preference in police hiring. Historically,
most veterans hired by the department have been white, say activists.
“White veterans have been visible in numbers,”
said Vernell Baker, co-host of the Boston Neighborhood Network
show Veterans’ Showcase. “Either blacks are not veterans,
or often they don’t see themselves as veterans — they
weren’t in a war, or they aren’t disabled.”
Activists hope to encourage more veterans of color
to realize they qualify for preferential hiring and to apply to
become officers.
“For all veterans returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan, we are advertising at the six Veterans Administration
centers,” said Rev. Ernest Branch, speaking on behalf of
the Veterans Benefits Clearinghouse. “We will also be recruiting
from our clients.”
Branch, the founder of Veterans’ Showcase,
says that in the coming weeks he and co-host Baker will encourage
veterans to become officers during their show’s weekly time
slot on Mondays from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m.
This Monday, the co-hosts brought on representatives
of the Massachusetts Association of Minority Law Enforcement Officers
and the police department to encourage veterans to apply.
“It is worth it,” said MAMLEO President
Angela Williams-Mitchell. “Don’t dismay. Don’t
think you don’t have the qualifications, that there is something
in your background that’s a hinderance. This is a good job
financially. The benefits are phenomenal.”
At their 61 Columbia Road office, MAMLEO will host
three information sessions on the exam — Tuesday, January
18, Monday, January 24 and Thursday, February 3 from 6:00 to 8:00
p.m.
During the sessions, open to anybody wishing to
become a Boston police officer, interested applicants can find
out about MAMLEO’s exam preparatory workshops.
People of color face new obstacles to becoming Boston
police officers following last year’s court ruling. Under
affirmative action, one applicant of color was hired for every
white applicant, once all qualifying veterans and children of
officers killed in the line of duty had been hired.
Now, after preferential hiring for veterans and children of deceased
officers, the remaining spaces will be filled by those with the
best test scores.
White applicants tend to score higher on the exam.
Furthermore, while Boston has a slight majority of people of color,
just 358 blacks, 191 Latinos and 44 Asians have applied for the
exam so far, compared to over 800 whites, according to Williams-Mitchell.
While pushing for more veterans of color to take
the exam may help boost the number of applicants of color, the
veterans preference itself may be modified in the near future.
O’Toole has said she would consider modifying the veterans
preference and either eliminating the exam or making it pass-fail.
Meanwhile, Boston Police Recruit Investigation
Unit Commander Norman Hill says, the department is reaching out
to applicants in all corners of the city.
“We are outreaching to everyone in the city,”
he said. “The department’s plan involves visiting
all the colleges, job fairs and neighborhood groups. We are not
just targeting black veterans. We are targeting the entire population
of Boston.”
To avoid a $25 processing fee, applicants should
sign up for the exam by February 21. The $60 application fee can
be waived for many veterans and others receiving assistance from
government programs. Call Sergeant Hill at 617-343-5010 or MAMLEO
at 617-436-6868 with questions.
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