Following is an August 27 letter from Stamford (CT) Professional Fire Fighters President Brendan T. Keatley to Stamford Democratic City Committee Chairman John Mallozzi about the committee’s decision to hold a fundraising dinner on September 11, 2015.
Chairman Mallozzi,
I write to you today from an IAFF Sponsored Health and Safety Conference near Washington, DC, where 6 members of my local union are joining over 3,000 fire fighters from across the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Great Britain with the goal of improving fire fighter safety and health.
As I sit in the ballroom this morning listening to world renowned health and safety experts I look to my left and see a banner with images from the World Trade Center that says “Never Forget”, I look to my right and see another banner with the iconic image of FDNY fire fighters raising the American Flag at the World Trade Center that says “Always Remember.”
It is clear to my local union that your party has forgotten the sacrifices made on September 11, 2001, sacrifices that were made by both civilians and first responders.
On Friday August 7, 2015, I received an invitation by e-mail, from the Stamford Democratic Party inviting our union to join a fundraising dinner on Friday, September 11, 2015, hosted by the Stamford Democratic Party.
I must say that the selection of this day is in horribly bad taste; a day when the nation, the state of Connecticut, and our own city commemorate the nearly 3,000 Americans, including 343 firefighters and 161 Connecticut residents, including many from Fairfield County, whose lives were taken away by enemies of our democratic way of life.
In a May 2015 ceremony honoring four slain Stamford police officers, Mayor David Martin even explained that he defined a hero as someone “putting it all on the line to protect the community.” Fire fighters across the country do this every single day in this country, including in the City of Stamford.
The act of scheduling a political fundraiser on the remembrance day of the September 11th terrorist attacks shows bad judgment and just exactly how detached the party leadership is from the sensitivities of those innocent Americans who lost their lives on 9/11 and those of us who seek to uphold their sacrifice for future generations.
Additionally, for the Democratic Party and its top leaders, to be hosting a fundraiser on this sacred day further defies common sense and sends quite an anti-labor message. If the Democratic Party and its leadership, from the top of the ticket to the bottom, truly respects union workers and first responders, it would and should act more responsibly.
Stamford firefighters and our families are disappointed in the Democratic leadership for its callousness and lack of consideration for the sanctity of this day.
Respectfully,
Brendan T. Keatley
