Civil rights leader Ellison Bennett will be my guest today on News Talk 1370 WCOA’s “Pensacola Speaks.” He will talk about the community’s reaction to City Administrator Eric Olson placing the Pensacola Fire Chief Matt Schmitt and Deputy Chief Joe Glover on paid administrative leave while the city’s outside law firm investigates their EEOC complaints against the administrator and Chief Human Resource Officer Ed Sisson.
Bennett, who is on the national board of the National Movement for Human and Civil Rights, told Inweekly that citizens are planning to attend the Pensacola City Council meeting on Thursday, Feb. 11 to voice their concerns over this incident.
While Olson has said that the administrative leaves were done because the insurance carrier’s attorney recommended it and the race of the deputy chief wasn’t a factor, Bennett said that this has resurfaced bad memories of the racism inside the city government.
“Firefighters came to me 10 years ago after they found hangman’s nooses in their lockers. A former chief of the fire department would come on the intercom system and say, ‘All you coons, come to the meeting.’ It was just awful. I wanted to approach the city council back then, but the officers were told, ‘Well, if you all be quiet, and give us the hangman’s noose, eventually we’ll give you a promotion.’ I didn’t agree with it then, because when this nonsense happens, you have to address it head on.â€
“Pensacola Speaks” is on News Talk 1370 WCOA weekdays from 5-6 p.m. We will open up the phone lines after the interview – 850-478-3116.