New Haven Promotes Firefighters 5 Months After Obama Supreme Court Appointee's Case Overturned

Five months after the Supreme Court overturned a reverse discrimination case against white Connecticut firefighters denied promotion because of their race, the City of New Haven, Connecticut will promote 14 of the firefighters.  It was Obama’s Supreme Court appointee Sonya Sotomayor who, as an appeals court judge, ruled against the white firefighters in favor of unqualified minority firefighters to receive promotion based on their race. 

It was an embarrassing moment for Obama and Judge Sotomayor as this case came before her as Obama’s Supreme Court judge because her previous decision was overturned by her peers.  The Court’s decision served as a rebuke to Sotomayor’s previous ruling.

Now even more embarrassing for Obama’s Supreme Court judge, the firefighters were promoted by the local fire department, a promotion she fought as an appeals court judge. 

Legislating from the bench?

The City of New Haven, Conn., says it will promote 14 firefighters who were plaintiffs in a high-profile lawsuit over racial preferences.

City officials told WTNH-TV, New Haven, Tuesday night the promotions for the firefighters in the Ricci vs. DeStefano case would be finalized as early as possible.

The Boston Globe said Wednesday the immediate promotions were ordered by a federal judge the previous day.

Ricci vs. DeStefano accused the city of reverse discrimination and became a thorny issue in the confirmation of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor. Sotomayor ruled as an appellate judge that the city was within its right to throw out the 2004 promotion test after no African-American firefighters scored high enough to win promotions to captain.

The Supreme Court this summer reversed the decision and sent the case back to U.S. District Court, which Tuesday issued a new ruling that the civil rights of the 14 plaintiffs had been violated and ordered their promotion.

Update on Friday, November 27, 2009 at 07:48AM by Amy Proctor

Why Didn’t CNN Mention Obama Pick Sotomayor in This Story?

 

 

After all, Sonia Sotomayor, Barack Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, is the reason this is a story in the first place.  The Supreme Court hears cases everyday and this story is news because as an appeals court judge, she voted against white firefighters who were discriminated against and not promoted because of their race in a reverse discrimination case. 

 

 

Comments

[Gary]

This is great news and a direct blow to affirmative action.
During the '80's, I personally experienced reverse discrimination while testing at various Fire Departments around the state of CA for employment. On several occasions, multiple lists were established for race and gender, and candidates were hired by quota; not qualification. The danger in that is in public safety; especially firefighting and law enforcement, candidates must be the best of the best, both physically and mentally. To hire or promote someone based on anything other than merit diminishes the quality of the service provided, and when the issue is life and death, that is a very bad thing.

Congratulations to those pinning on the bugles.

[Hawkeye]

C'mon Amy. Everyone knows that it's not discrimination unless you are a person of color. White people - especially men - are NEVER discriminated against. Bias against white males is always referred to as "social justice". Please get your "PC-speak" correct next time. (:D)

[Greta]

Barry is trying to correct this obvious problem on the current court. Where is the empathy...

[Mike]

I think the days of Affirmative Action are numbered. The fact is we have to focus on improving conditions and opening up oppurtunities for the young regardless of race. Many working class kids are being shut out while children of Doctors, and Lawyers are getting in based on color. That is becoming hard to defend. The days of Jessie Jackson are over. Every generation has less and less racism. I am optimistic about the future.