HARRISBURG, Pa. — The Swatara Township Board of Commissioners voted to close the Friendship Fire Company of Bressler.
A new report was released on Wednesday night, detailing alleged racial discrimination by the company over a four-year span.
There were many heated exchanges during Wednesday night's meeting surrounding the report, which details four separate instances in 2021 where reports of racial discrimination were made to township officials, three of which came from within the Bressler Fire community.
Between August of 2021 and September of 2022, the report said all information on the alleged discriminatory practices at the company was turned over to the State Attorney General's Office.
But the report detailed alleged discriminatory practices dating back to 2020. A person with 35 years of service claimed there was a policy that only white members could join both the fire company and the social club.
The claim developed when others came forward to back it up.
In 2022, this led the Civil Rights Enforcement Section of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office to order Swatara Township to add anti-discrimination language in the fire company’s by-laws and constitution. They also ordered the fire company to add a non-discrimination statement on its website and social platforms.
The most recent complaint was in March, when an African American man and his wife went to the club during St. Patrick's Day weekend. The report said the two live in Bressler and were interested in becoming members of the club. When they asked a bartender for an application, they were told they were not accepting any new members.
The man later heard from others that the club was known to refuse membership to minorities. In the report, individuals associated with the fire company said they were aware of rumors about the "policy" and said membership was usually an easy process.
“We had a fire company that was notified that they needed to make changes in 2022," said Thomas Connolly, a commissioner for Swatara Township. "The changes had to do with discriminatory practices; it doesn’t look like they did it.”
These claims led the investigation to reopen.
In April, the fire company was suspended from service in Swatara Township.
Last night, it was officially closed.
"My initial reaction is disappointment that we had to even talk about something like this," said Connolly. "I’m proud that It was basically an unanimous vote."
This report was made public on Wednesday night. The attorney representing the company said he was not made aware of any of its findings until they were read at the meeting.
Other members of the board said they had no time to digest the report, nor was there any time for a proper response.
“I got the timeline last night and two days ago I got the investigative report, that's not right," said Christine Zubek, a commissioner for Swatara Township. "What happened to transparency that you always talk about? What happened to giving us time to review the information? I don't have all the facts. I want the facts.”
The board voted 3-0, with two abstentions. The two Republican commissioners both abstained from the vote Wednesday night because they felt the process was rushed.