Retired Baltimore firefighter honors African American trailblazers

In 1953, the Baltimore City Fire Department desegregated, hiring its first group of ten Black firefighters. Seven decades later, the African American Firefighters Historical Society honors the continued service of Black firefighters across the country. In January, the organization received a grant to support the creation of the International Black Firefighters Museum & Safety Education Center in East Baltimore.
We speak with George Collins, a retired Baltimore City firefighter and co-founder of the African American Firefighters Historical Society.
Links:Maryland awards $5 million in grants to help preserve Black heritage sitesGovernor Moore Announces $5 Million in African American Heritage Preservation Grant AwardsProud CompanyDo you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472