BLACKS CHALLENGE THE I.A.F.F.

Fighting the

Fires of Racism

When Lane Kirkland, president of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., spoke at a civil rights march in Washington last August, he sounded almost like Jesse Jackson. "We have fought too long and hard to turn back now," Kirkland said, as he reiterated the labor federation's commitment to affirmative action for minorities and women. That verbal commitment, however, is being put severely to the test in the firefighting service throughout the United States.

The International Association of Fire Fighters, an A.F.L.-C.I.O. union with a membership of 177,000 men and women, is on a crusade against affirmative action. Almost ...