The New Haven 20 returned to the steps where they launched a landmark Supreme Court case — to proclaim victory and “vindication” in a ruling that promises to change the course of civil rights law in the country.
Frank Ricci (at right in photo), who’s now in line for a lieutenant’s promotion that has eluded him for five years, heralded the decision as “tremendous.”
Ricci was the first named plaintiff in Ricci v. DeStefano, the case in which a 5 – 4 Supreme Court majority ruled Monday that New Haven can’t ignore the results of a fire department promotional exam just because no African-Americans scored high enough. (Read about that here.)
“This ruling is proof positive that we should view people as individuals, and not statistics,” said Ricci, standing before a throng of national media outside the U.S. District courthouse on Church Street where he and his colleagues filed the case five years ago. (Click on the play arrow below to watch remarks from the press event).
“If you work hard, you can succeed in America,” said Ricci. He testified in court that he suffers from dyslexia and studied eight to 13 hours per day for the exam. The officer, who has 12 years on the city force, now expects to be promoted to lieutenant.
“All 20 of these guys worked hard to study, to apply themselves at work, to read trade magazines, to take classes on their own time,” Ricci said.
“They’re all heroes,” he said. All 20 took a stand against the tests not knowing whether they would be promoted or not, he noted.
Asked what he wants the city to do next, Ricci replied, “the right thing — make promotions!”
Another plaintiff at the press conference, Matt Marcarelli, put it this way: “We took a lot of kicks in the stomach over this case. And we finally got our vindication.”
Pay Day
His attorney, Karen Torre (pictured at the top of the story receiving a fire hat), said the group will seek “the full package of rights and remedies that these men are entitled to.” She declined to offer specifics.
“That will come at a later time,” she said.
Torre heralded the decision as a hard-fought victory for the New Haven 20.
“The justice they sought was delayed, but they’re finally going to get it,” said Torre. She said it’s clear that the Supreme Court justices decreed that U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton should not have issued summary judgment on behalf of the city, but instead on behalf of the plaintiffs.
Torre elicited a chuckle from the packed audience by pulling out an Obama reference.
The New Haven 20 had the “audacity of hope,” she said, that some court, somewhere, would “accord to firefighters the recognition and respect that they deserve and reject attempts to lower the professional standards of competence for the sake of identity politics.”
“Today, the Supreme Court did all of this and we could not be more relieved or more delighted.”
She said the ruling has made the 20 men national symbols.
“In 2006, we were handed a ruling right here in this courthouse that we believed was not only wrong on the law, but improperly put political considerations ahead of public safety and the safety of firefighters,” said Torre. “Convinced that this ruling would endanger the lives and safety of firefighters everywhere, the New Haven 20 resolved to do everything possible to try to get that ruling overturned.”
“In this very long, arduous process, these men became a symbol for millions of Americans who have grown tired of seeing individual achievement and merit take a back seat to race and ethnicity,” said Torre.
The lone Hispanic member of the New Haven 20, Ben Vargas (pictured), spoke for the first time about the racial dynamics he and fellow Latino firefighters found themselves in.
New Haven’s Hispanic firefighters did not take a position on Ricci; their international organization did, on the side of the city.
The leader of the international group, Ronald Morales (read about him here), said that blacks and Hispanics must band together to break up a white-dominated fire department workforce.
Vargas said Morales was “dead wrong” about that.
“The testing process is what we need to make correct,” Vargas said.
Following A New Law
After the New Haven 20 press conference, the media throng gravitated a few doors down to City Hall, where Mayor John DeStefano offered his take on the decision at a press conference of his own.
DeStefano (pictured) took pains to credit the good intentions on all sides. He spoke of the city officials who were following what until Monday was an interpretation of civil rights law followed by eight out of eight federal court rulings and presidents of both parties. He mentioned the New Haven 20 plaintiffs who “felt they had played by the rules” and deserved promotions. And he cited “another set of firefighters” — black firefighters — who “feel the rules are constantly stacked against them.”
Asked what happens next, DeStefano said he expects the case to land back in Judge Arterton’s court within three months. “I take it we will end up in some fashion certifying the list” of top scorers in the 2004 promotional exams.
DeStefano noted that the city in this case was following an interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that has been enshrined in actions by eight federal judges, and Republican Presidents Richard Nixon and George Bush I.
It’s a new day now after Monday’s 5 – 4 ruling, he acknowledged. While he disagrees with the court’s decision, he said, “We have an obligation to follow it. We will.”
Fire Chief Michael Grant and Assistant Chief Ron Dumas (right to left in photo) said after the press conference that Monday’s ruling will enable the department to “move on.”
Paul Bass contributed to this story.
Past stories on fire department promotions and the Ricci case:
• Was He The Culprit?
• Supreme Court Overturns City On Ricci
• On Page 25, A Hint
• Minority Firefighters Vow Post-Ricci Unity
• Ricci Ruling Won’t End Quest
• Ricci, Sotomayor Brand DeStefano
• Firefighter Case Reveals Surprise Obama Stand
• Justices Zero In On Race-Based Distinctions
• Rights Groups Back Black Firefighters
• The Supreme Stakes: Title VII’s Future
• Dobbs v. Bolden
• Latino Group Backs White Firefighters
• Black Firefighters: Ricci Case Poses Grave Threat
• NAACP Backs City In Firefighter Case
• Paging Justice Kennedy
• Fire Inspectors Promoted
• Fire Inspector List Approved
• U.S. Supreme Court To Hear Firefighters’ Case
• Fire Promotions Examined in Supreme Court