Kim Kardashian
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic ; ZUMAPRESS.com / MEGAKim Kardashian used its massive platform to draw attention to a relatively unknown and overlooked group of firefighters battling the devastating Fires in Los Angeles.
“I’ve spent the last week watching my city burn. And I’ve seen and spoken to many firefighters who are up all night using every ounce of their strength to save our community,” Kardashian, 44, said in a series of posts shared via Instagram Stories on Saturday, January 11.
“Thank you @calfire la County Fire and Los Angeles City Fire for all you do to save lives and homes,” she added.
Kardashian then went on to praise the incarcerated firefighters battling the flames. (According to a recent report by New York Times(At least 900 inmates are currently battling the historic fires in and around the greater Los Angeles area.)
“In all 5 fires in Los Angeles, there are hundreds of incarcerated firefighters risking their lives to save us,” Kardashian explained. “They’re on the Palisades fire, the Eaton fire and the Pasadena fire and they’re working 24-hour shifts. They get almost nothing, they risk their lives, some have died, to prove to the community that they have changed and are now the first responders. I see them as heroes.”
According to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitationtrapped firefighters in the area “are working to cut fire lines and remove fuel to slow the spread of the fire,” as reported by New York Times. “Their presence provides much-needed manpower to depleted fire crews,” the publication said.
“Incarcerated firefighters were paid $1 an hour to risk their lives and that pay has been the same since 1984,” Kardashian continued on her Instagram stories. “It has never been raised with inflation. It was never raised when the fires got worse and many (firefighters) died. There was an agreement this year to raise the pay of incarcerated firefighters to $5 an hour, but it was dropped at the last minute.”
Kardashian, who is also known for her advocacy work for prison reform, then called on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to increase the pay incarcerated firefighters get when they fight wildfires.
“I’m calling on @cagovernor to do what no governor has done in 4 decades and raise the pay of incarcerated firefighters to a rate that honors a human being risking their lives to save our lives and homes,” she wrote .
At least 16 people have lost their lives as a result of the five wildfires around Los Angeles, according to local authorities. According to NBC Newsthe fires have burned at least 37,000 acres and destroyed more than 12,000 buildings.
A number of Hollywood celebrities — from Milo Ventimiglia and Anthony Hopkinss to Eugene Levy and Paris Hilton — have lost their homes.
In her Saturday post, Kardashian also thanked the “firefighters at @calfire Ventura Training Center for saving my community when it started burning this week.”
“These are all FORMER incarcerated firefighters who have come home and want to continue serving our communities as firefighters,” she continued. “Due to bills passed by the @antirecidivismcoalition, these guys can now have their sentences reduced by expunging the crimes from their fire department records. And when they get home, they can get six-figure jobs for the fire department.
Check it out LAFD website for local wildfire alerts and click here for resources on how to help those affected.
