For some time now, the debate has been raging over the renaming of the people to whom the fire department responds. Many are for calling them “customers.” In fact, they speak of these people as though we can draw in their business. Others prefer the traditional handle of “victim.” And during all these debates I have read, everyone who has written in defense of the new title seems to have really missed the mark on what has happened to a person who has gone through the experience of having a fire in his home.
A fire steals a person`s possessions, destroys his home, and on occasion steals his life. To use a soft descriptive word to cover up what is really going on is to devalue the true nature of the horrific event U. We must remember that fire and all its results are ugly. It is not a glamorous experience for the victim. It`s true that firefighters love their job, but the truth is that every time we work, someone has to suffer.
To call a victim a customer is to mask the true nature of our job, and it dehumanizes those we care for. The term victim helps us maintain our compassion. When we lose focus on the true nature of firefighting, that`s when people die and truly become victims of fire.
I have grown very tired and disheartened with those who insist on covering up the true nature of our business with soft, fuzzy words like customer. Firefighting is a dirty, dangerous, ugly, and victimizing business–sometimes for firefighters as well.
Let us unmask these customers and reveal the true people beneath. Those we deal with are not cold, unfeeling customers, as the name implies. They are human beings with precious lives and fragile emotions.
Regardless of economic stature or whether the person is law abiding or lawless, we respond to the alarm without prejudice. All are entitled [to our service], not just those who can pay. Aid must be rendered, a fire put out, and compassion extended. They have suffered; therefore, they are victims. Never forget that.
Michael Bricault
Firefighter
Albuquerque (NM) Fire Department
