Stop Saying Quotas “Don’t Work” Because They Demonstrably Do

The New York City Council announced new legislation this week that seeks to address gender and racial disparities in the FDNY, with the goal of creating a fire department that better reflects the diversity of the city it serves (currently, the vast majority of the department—76%—is made up of white men, with Black firefighters only accounting for 8%, and women representing less than 1%). And as has come to be expected when diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives are pushed forward, out come the cries of “quotas,” of unfairness and discrimination.