IAFF and IABPFF Begin Promising Partnership

April 20, 2005 – Meeting for the first time in the history of both organizations, Harold Schaitberger, General President of the IAFF, and Johnny Brewington, President of the International Association of Black Professional Fire Fighters (IABPFF), discussed opportunities for collaboration. The two leaders, along with representatives from IAFF and IABPFF, met in Washington, DC to review ways to work together in the future on issues of importance to the fire service and both organizations.

“Promoting equity in our firehouses is an issue that has occupied a high priority for me since I became General President of the IAFF,” says General President Schaitberger. “There is much to be gained when members of organizations that may have been at odds in the past can get together and talk face-to-face. We found that many of our perceived differences were actually common obstacles that both organizations are striving to overcome.

Additional meetings are planned at the staff level to explore legislative and other areas where the IAFF and the IABPFF can work in tandem.