On CNN, Rep. Jasmine Crockett pushes back on baseless right-wing media claims that DEI has hindered the LAFD wildfire response
Crockett: “That has nothing to do with it, we are looking at qualifications. What diversity, equity, and inclusion has always been about is ... Don't just look at the white men. Open it up and recognize that other people can be qualified.”
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From the January 8, 2025, edition of CNN's NewsNight With Abby Phillip
SCOTT JENNINGS (CONTRIBUTOR): Also in California, you might have recall a news story from last year, there was some interest in the fire departments and the firefighters in California. And the interest was that there were too many white men who were firefighters and we need to have a program in California to make sure we don't have enough white men as firefighters.
(CROSSTALK)
JENNINGS: And yet I'm wondering now if your house is burning down, how much do you care what color the firefighters are?
ABBY PHILLIP (HOST): Congresswoman, you can respond.
REP. JASMINE CROCKETT (GUEST): Listen, I am so tired. You know what? There was an article that just came out that said that actually the most educated demographic in this country right now is Black women.
So let me be clear: Because you are a woman or because — I know that some of the right has been sharing these photos of the fact that I believe that the fire chief may be a woman or something. That has nothing to do with it, we are looking at qualifications. What diversity, equity, and inclusion has always been about is say, you know what? Open this up. Don't just look at the white men. Open it up and recognize that other people can be qualified. And the fact that we want to, at a time when people are dying, decide that a country of immigrants is failing or people are dying because the same very people that built this country because the last time I checked, y'all didn't say that anything was wrong with the White House, and I can promise you it was my ancestors that built the White House.
So listen, if we have been good enough to build this country, we are good enough to serve and die overseas, we are good enough to serve in other ways. And the fact that people actually decide that they wanna engage in public service, whether it's sitting in Congress or whether it's serving on the fire department or the police department, should not be an issue.
The fact is, stop trying to act as if only white men are the ones that are capable. Because right now, you're sitting at a table with 3 very capable Black women.
JENNINGS: I'm not. I'm just simply saying that as a matter of public policy in California, the main interest in the fire department lately has been in DEI programming and budget cuts. And now we have this massive fire.
PHILLIP: But Scott, are we really blaming the fire department? The people in the LA fire department? No.
JENNINGS: No, I'm blaming the Democrats who run the state.
PHILLIP: No, but the fire department right now, they are dealing with a historic fire. Okay?
JENNINGS: And they have terrible leadership —
PHILLIP: That that is caused by climate —
JENNINGS: I don't know that —
PHILLIP: By the fact that it's extremely dry in the state of California and they are fighting it in tropical force winds in that state. So how is it anything to do with DEI? How is it anything to do with it?