Rosenthal Awaits Discrimination Complaint Investigation

By Andrew Gorosko

The chairman of Board of Fire Commissioners declined comment this week on the first selectman’s request that he investigate allegations of ethnic slurs being made against a Botsford volunteer firefighter by an officer of the United Fire Company of Botsford.

“I’m not going to comment on that issue,” Kevin Cragin said August 2 in response to a reporter’s question regarding the progress of his investigation into the allegations. Mr Cragin was not available for comment on the matter last week.

In a July 14 letter to First Selectman Herbert Rosenthal, Kambiz Moayedi alleges that “racist remarks” were made against him by a fire officer in his absence.

Mr Moayedi, 40, who is of Iranian descent, and who has taken a leave of absence as a firefighter from the Botsford organization, alleges that, in his absence, on at least one occasion, an officer of the fire company referred to him as a “terrorist” in the presence of that officer’s superior, who allegedly did not nothing to stop such remarks from being made by that officer. Mr Moayedi further alleges that the officer also had referred to him as a “sand nigger” in his absence. Mr Moayedi joined the Botsford fire company in October 2004.

“I have received both verbal and written signed documentation by current volunteers that these comments were made, and always in my absence,” Mr Moayedi wrote in his letter to the first selectman.

When asked by a reporter to produce such documentation to corroborate his claims of slurs being made against him in his absence, Mr Moayedi declined to do so, saying that he would disclose such information at the appropriate time, if necessary.

“There is a serious racial problem within the Botsford Fire Department and it seems the issue stems from the top,” Mr Moayedi wrote to the first selectman.

Asked on August 2 how the investigation was proceeding, Mr Rosenthal said that he had not yet spoken to Mr Cragin on the matter. “I’m going to expect something back from him [Cragin] in a reasonable period of time,” Mr Rosenthal said. The first selectman said he also expects Mr Cragin to make some recommendations stemming from his findings.

“It is serious,” Mr Rosenthal said of Mr Moayedi’s allegations. The first selectman has met with Mr Moayedi to discuss his complaint.

Mr Rosenthal said it is unclear whether Mr Cragin would provide him with a written or a verbal report on the matter.

The first selectman said he has asked the town attorney to review the lines of authority that may exist between the town and its volunteer fire companies. Such lines of authority are unclear, Mr Rosenthal said.

Mr Rosenthal said he asked the lawyer to investigate whether the town government has any specific authority concerning volunteer fire company operations.

The town subsidizes the five local volunteer fire companies through fire equipment purchases and also through funding for some operational expenses.

“There’s clearly the power of the purse strings,” Mr Rosenthal said. 

In a July 25 letter to Mr Cragin, Mr Rosenthal wrote of “allegations of extremely inappropriate ethnic slurs made by and condoned by officers of the Botsford Volunteer Fire Company.”

“Please look into this matter and report back to me anything that you can find out about the validity of these allegations and what, if any, action has or will be taken by the fire company to resolve the matter, if the allegations are true,” Mr Rosenthal wrote.

Botsford Fire Chief Wayne Ciaccia has said of Mr Moayedi’s complaint, “We’re looking into it…We’re trying to get to the bottom of it…I want to talk to Kevin about it…We don’t have a problem with racial discrimination in our firehouse.”