City firefighters are being urged to stay out of politics and not post photos of President-elect Donald Trump in firehouses.
The fiercely fought presidential campaign, and Donald Trump's surprising victory, have generated a lot of passion and, since Election Day, protests. Now, city firefighters are being told not to jump into the fray.
NY1 has learned that in the past several days, Fire Department commanders have been spreading the word that firefighters are to avoid any type of political displays in firehouses, on firetrucks or even on t-shirts.
The Fire Department tells us the directive was not aimed at any particular candidate and was simply a restatement of longstanding FDNY policy of keeping politics out of the workplace.
But individual firefighters NY1 spoke with off camera say the message they received was that photos of Donald Trump are not permitted. And in a statement, the firefighters' union president tells NY1, "Honoring and respecting the office of President of the United States is an American tradition. What is quite ironic, is that the president-elect’s photo will soon hang in every federal building, on military bases and U.S. Embassies across the globe."
Unlike in years past, the city's firefighters unions did not endorse a presidential candidate, though it is widely believed that Trump has a base of support in the 11,000-member department.
The FDNY says it chose to relay the policy in phone calls to firehouses rather than send an official paper directive, because the policy of keeping politics out of the firehouse has long existed.