The Biden-Harris Department of Justice is making headlines for its unusual approach to hiring in police and fire departments. They are suing these departments over what they call “racist” requirements, like basic math skills. Yes, you read that right! The DOJ believes it’s discriminatory to expect public safety workers to pass simple math tests. The latest case involves South Bend, Indiana, where the DOJ claims that a math and physical fitness test discriminates against Black and female applicants. So apparently, asking firefighters to calculate how many hoses they need or run quickly is too much to ask.
Kamala Harris’s Image Problem
This crackdown comes at a tricky time for Kamala Harris as she tries to rebrand herself as a moderate during the presidential race. By insisting that these job tests are racist, her administration seems to suggest that they view certain communities as unable to pass even basic exams. To back this up, they’re using something called “disparate impact.” This theory says if there are racial disparities in results, racism must be the cause—regardless of any real evidence showing discrimination.
Settlements Raise Questions
The lawsuits don’t stop with South Bend. Just last week, Durham, North Carolina settled with the DOJ for nearly a million dollars paid out to Black applicants who failed their firefighter exam. On top of that, they have been told they must hire up to 16 people who didn’t pass! Meanwhile, those Black applicants who actually passed get nothing at all. If these tests are supposedly so biased against them, why aren’t all Black applicants getting compensation? The reasoning here seems pretty shaky.
Cobb County’s Dilemma
In another case involving Cobb County, Georgia, the DOJ accused officials of unfairly excluding Black candidates from firefighter roles based on written exams and credit checks impacting them disproportionately. However, the DOJ doesn’t explain why most applicants can successfully pass these tests or how a standard written exam could be considered racist only towards some individuals.
Maryland’s Costly Settlement
Over in Maryland, state police were ordered by the DOJ to pay $2.75 million to women and Black applicants who failed basic fitness and written exams. According to the DOJ’s logic here: more diversity among police officers is crucial—but at what price? Lowering standards for jobs tied directly to public safety can lead down a dangerous path. Take Memphis’s police force; it faced serious backlash when poorly vetted hires were involved in incidents of brutality—even though all those officers were Black.
A Dangerous Trend?
If this trend continues unchecked, we might find ourselves living in an era where meeting qualifications takes a backseat while diversity quotas take center stage. Sure—diversity is important but let’s not forget: public safety should never come second best!
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