Firefighter’s ‘extremist’ activity leads to PA township parting ways with fire company
Bon Air Fire Company tells Haverford it saw no reason to get rid of the volunteer
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This is something different. The township of Haverford in Delaware County, Pennsylvania demanded the Bon Air Fire Company get rid of a volunteer because of his affiliation with an “extremist group”. News media report that group is the “Proud Boys”. According to Haverford officials, the volunteer, who says he had distanced himself from the group after going through part of the initiation process, offered his resignation from Bon Air Fire Company. The board of the fire company refused to accept the firefighter’s resignation. As of today (Wednesday) the Township of Haverford says it will do without the Bon Air Fire Company. Details are in the press release (below) from Haverford.
Haverford Township officials found out mid-August that a volunteer with the Bon Air Fire Company had gone through part of an extremist group’s initiation process.
The township says the group’s website says members are “Western chauvinists who refuse to apologize for creating the modern world,” wants closed borders and doesn’t allow women and transgender men in the group.
A Google search of these ideas leads to the Proud Boys, an “alt-right” group of white supremacists who claim they fight for freedom of speech but promote violence.
NBC10 spoke to a member of the Bon Air Fire Company who said they were “blindsided” by the announcement and are trying to figure out their next move. We have not yet received an official statement from the members however.
Fire service in the Bon Air section will now be provided by the Brookline, Llanerch, Manoa and Oakmont Fire Companies which are all within about 2.5 miles.
