SF Fire Department management lack of Chinese American representation

(SAN FRANCISCO) San Francisco Fire Department has long been lacking Chinese American representation. There has been no Chinese American sitting in the 5-member Fire Commission for seven years. The Chinese community leaders called for promoting more Asian firefighters to the management positions.

Acting Assistant Fire Chief Ken Yee who was promoted in early November became one of two highest ranking Chinese American firefighters in SFFD. Currently Asian Americans have made up 24% of all firefighters in the Fire Department.

Under the system of the Fire Department, two deputy chiefs and several management positions are political appointments. Assistant Fire Chief is the highest position for promotion based on merit and testing scores. Yee has been the highest score holder on the current list for promotion.

For the past two years, the 7-member San Francisco Police Commission has no Chinese American representation. Both the public safety city commissions, Police Commission and Fire Commission, have similar systems to select three finalists for the chief job. The mayor appoints police chief and fire chief from the finalists.

Before promoting to Acting Assistant Chief, Yee was the Battalion Chief of the Chinatown Fire Station for four years. Yee has been closely working with the Chinese community for many years.

Once the community leaders heard of the good news of Yee promoted to a higher position, they were eager to support him for the permanent promotion and hope for more Chinese American firefighters to be promoted.

A group of community leaders who represented different organizations called for a press conference last week in Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, the highest organization among hundreds of the family associations in Chinatown. It was also the first time in decades for the Chinese community to publicly discuss the underrepresentation of Chinese American in the Fire Department.

Yee was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to San Francisco when he was seven years old. Like other new immigrants, his parents first settled in Chinatown when they arrived San Francisco. Yee had his childhood in Chinatown until the age of 13 when his parents decided to move to the Sunset District. Yee grew up in Sunset District and still lives in the same neighborhood with his wife and three sons up to the present time.

Yee is a graduate of Lowell High School and University of California at Berkeley. He worked as an accountant and banker before joining the Fire Department. Yee also earned his master degree in Finance from San Francisco State University. After several years working in the private sectors, Yee determined to join the Fire Department in order to serve the community as a firefighter.

There have been 25 years since Yee joined the San Francisco Fire Department. He passed all the tests and was promoted from firefighter all the way to Battalion Chief, the highest level of promotions by merit and promotion tests.

“I love to be a firefighter to serve the community with my language skill. I had been hoping for the opportunity to station in Chinatown. Finally I was successful to have that opportunity to serve as the battalion Chief at Chinatown station. I was the second Chinese American to do the job. I was very honored,” said Yee.

Thomas Ng, former Fire Commissioner serving from 1992-1996, said in the Chinatown press conference that he was very disappointed to see no Chinese American serving at the Fire Commission for seven years.

"It always had Chinese American on the Fire Commission. But there has been none in recent years. We are not happy to see that,” Ng said.

Ng continued, " The lack of representation at all levels in the San Francisco Fire Department would also impact the Chinese community as a whole. Now Chinese Americans are the one third of the city's population. We should have a Chinese American Fire Chief and Deputy Chief. We are so much behind for having no voice in the Fire Commission as well."

The San Francisco Fire Department was established in 1849. In over 170 years, there has been no Chinese American Fire Chief in the City. Only Bernie Lee was appointed to be the Deputy Chief from 2000-2004.

According to the report released by the US Department of Labor in 2016, the number of Asian firefighters in San Francisco increased from 9% in 1993 to 24% in 2016. The Federal Court issued a consent decree in 1987 for San Francisco Fire Department to hire and promote more minorities and women. San Francisco later became one of the most diverse fire departments in the country.

George Lau was the last Chinese American Fire Commissioner appointed by former San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom as of now. Lau was not reappointed by Late Mayor Lee in 2013. Both Lee and sitting Mayor London Breed have ever since appointed any Chinese American to the Fire Commission.

Breed made three appointments to the Fire Commission early this year. They were Katherine Feinstein, daughter of US Senator Diane Feinstein, Tony Rodriguez and Steve Nakajo who is Japanese American, was first appointed by former Mayor Willie Brown in 1996 and was reappointed by Breed this year. He has served on the Fire Commission for 25 years.

Nakajo tells Wind Newspaper that he welcomes having more Chinese Americans join the commission. He also supports promoting more qualified Asian firefighters that he has been advocating for a long time. He will continue to advocate for the Asian community in the next three years in his current term.

Mayor Breed’s press office did not respond to a request for comment on the issue by press time.

Sunset District Supervisor Gordon Ma said, “ I commend Chief Nicholson for appointing Ken Yee as the Acting Assistant Fire Chief. While civil service rules prevent a permanent appointment in the short term, there will likely be an opportunity in the coming year, so it is important for the Chinese community to continue its advocacy for representation in the leadership of the Fire Department."

“This is why I am eager to continue Supervisor Fewer’s good work and get to work closely with the Office of Racial Equality to ensure diversity and fair hiring and recruitment in our city government,” said Connie Chan, the Supervisor-Elect for Richmond District. Chan will be swearing into office on January 5, 2021.