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Comment by Brennen James Rupp on May 2, 2012 at 12:42pm

Dear, Denis Leary,

My name is Brennen Rupp and I’m a college student at Mankato State University in Mankato Minnesota. For one of my assignments in my gender and communication class we were assigned to write a letter that deals with problems with gender inequality. I decided to write mine on inequality between men and women in the fire department. I decided to write to you because you are very outspoken about how firefighters are treated. I watch your show Rescue Me the high drama/comedy about firefighters and on the show you mention a lot about how if women want to do the job they have to be able to do the same tasks as a men do and do it well. The goal of my letter is to urge people not to jump to conclusions when they see statistics about women in the firefighting profession and not to prejudge the fire department to be in any sexist.

In a survey done by Marc Bendick in 2008 in his article “Fair Shake” he found two issues reported by women; the first one was incidents in the workplace that dealt “discrimination, harassment or exclusion in the workplace.” (Marc Bendick. April, 2008). The second one dealt with fairness in employment. Women claimed that they were not treated equally to men in “hiring, assignments and promotions.” (Bendick, April, 2008). One thing I’d argue against that is that because of affirmative action some fire departments are actually hiring a woman instead of males that are maybe more qualified.

Another issue that women bring up is the lack of support and understanding of being both a mother and a firefighter. They claim that they are forced to choose between their job and family. A woman who was surveyed stated “it’s sad we are forced to choose between being a mother and firefighter.” (http://firechief.com/leadership/ar/firefighting_letters_0608). My response to this is that men have to make the same choice. They have to choose between being a father and their job. It’s just like any other job, being a nurse is the same way. Nurses work odd hours, how come women don’t complain then? When I was going to school for firefighting the instructors who happened to be retired or former firefighters told us all the time if you plan on being a family man this is not the job for you. You work odd hours and week to week your schedule changes. I think if you as an individual decided to be a firefighter I think you have to do that it is very tasking and have to make sacrifices.

According to Bendick “Out of the 350,000 paid firefighters in America only 3.7 percent of them are women…More than half of the nation’s paid fire departments have never had a female firefighter on their crew” (April, 2008). Is this a form of sexism? More than likely that’s what the majority of the people think when they hear those statistics. As a person who was in school for firefighting for a year when I see those statistics I don’t think sexism at all. At the school I was attending for firefighting there was probably 85 to 100 of us in the program, and only three were girls and the rest were white males. When you look at those numbers that’s about three percent right there and that’s your three percent right there. That is only one small sample but I would believe that it’s a good example of what my main point is in this letter, and that simply is the fact that maybe women just don’t want the job. The school I was attending was one of two that has a two year program for firefighting in the state of Minnesota, and it’s well known nationwide, and there were only three women in the whole program?

So what’s the main reason why people think there isn’t more women firefighters? In my opinion it’s the workplace environment. Have you ever been on a construction site or a warehouse of some sort? It’s very male dominated, there are jokes flying, bantering, bickering, sexual talk. Those workplace sites are probably not the most comfortable place for a woman to be a part of. A fire hall is no different. People always joke that a fire hall is like a nail salon. In the nail salon women are talking, gossiping and talking about female things. In a fire hall men are doing the same thing. I know if I were to walk into a nail salon I would not feel very comfortable. I don’t feel comfortable when my girlfriend and her friends are talking about female things and I’m the only male in the room. Does that mean a nail salon is somehow sexists? No that’s just the environment of the workplace in that profession. Firefighting is a male dominated profession; it has been since the beginning of the profession. Hell they actually used to be called fire-man, I think that alone shows you that things are getting better and the fire department is slowly changing. Like any culture, traditions are maintained with pride, change is resisted, especially when something has been the norm for so long. Looking back on the survey done by Bendick “it is estimated that it will take 72 years for women to make up 17 percent of the firefighting field.” (2008). I’ve learned in my class that culture change takes time. I think this situation is no different.

I’d just like to finish my letter by posing this question; Do any of us actually think firefighting is a desirable job? You run into burning buildings while everybody else is running out. You don’t get paid very well and there is one other big thing, it’s dangerous. Any time you run of that rig and run into a burning building, there is a slight chance that you may not come out. I think there is a simple reason on why there aren’t many female firefighters and that is the fact that they don’t want the job. It’s a very physically and mentally tasking profession, sure in a room of 100 women, more than likely there will only be three women that would want to be a firefighter. So next time you see a statistic I urge you not to jump to conclusions. Think about the situation before you start making assumptions.

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Comment by E. Max Hengst on January 22, 2012 at 12:59am

Mr. Leary, I am a Fire captain for the Los Angeles Fire Dept. I have written a book that was released in 2011. It's non-fiction about my job. I mention you in the book and I would like to send you a copy. The title: LAFD FF/PM Memoirs of an Outside Dog. Please contact me at emaxhengst1@att.net. E. Max Hengst

Comment by Ron Pelletier on January 13, 2012 at 9:29am

Just a shot in the dark I know that you must always be getting hit up for fundraisers but thought I would give it a try. I am a volunteer firefighter from RI and we are trying to raise funds for training for our membership. Town funds seem to have dried up so we are trying to do it ourselves. Was wondering if you would sign a leather New Yorker helmet for our raffle ? Thanks Lt Pelletier

Comment by kris cooper on December 16, 2011 at 10:58pm

hey denis , don't forget to wish bill hicks a happy birthday

he may not be with us anymore .. but you still owe him big time

have a nice day mr denis "plagiarism" leary

Comment by Jim Delbou/Mike Wall on November 8, 2011 at 2:36pm

Mr Leary, If you get this Sir I have a Hockey idea for a feature and scared to death of getting ripped off, If not I understand. However this project just wouldn't jive without you involved. Two aspiring writers from Norwood, Ma.

WALL DELBOU PRODUCTIONS

Comment by P L Hayner on July 17, 2011 at 9:03pm

Trying to contact Denis as a songwriter I know has written an amazing song that is a tribute to the firefighters in NY on 9/11. Think it would be incredible to use on the show. Please call me at 847/508-8552 about where to send an MP3 file of the song. It's truly outstanding!

Comment by Burkey on June 27, 2011 at 7:54pm

Bummed that Rescue Me is coming to an end but cant wait for the final nine episodes. Has to be one of the best shows ever along with Soprano's. When has there been two main characters, Tommy Gavin and Tony Soprano, that are so deeply flawed and tortured by their own abhorent behavior and still make the viewer care about their redemption. Have been rewatching the first 74 episodes leading up to the final 9 and they have some of the best dailogue ever. Great characters, great writing, great show. Thanks Dennis and crew. It has been fun.

Comment by Brad Cartman on May 2, 2011 at 1:30pm

Hoping this find it's way to Dennis. I'm a cigar shop owner who is trying to expand his store to include a smoking room and am quite aware of Dennis' stance on smokers rights. I know it's hard to believe, but we're still allowed to have smoking rooms in smoke shops here in Manitoba. The trouble is I've already put everything I have into this store and I need a little help to take it to the next level. I know this is a shot in the dark, but I'm sitting here watching Rescue Me day after day and thought I'd give it a try.

PS. Enjoy the good news today. Hope it brings some level of comfort.

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