Kim Kardashian recently used her platform to spotlight the incarcerated firefighters battling the dangerous Los Angeles fires, arguing that they should earn higher pay for their hard work.
The 44-year-old shared her message on her Instagram Stories, beginning by saying, “I have spent the last week watching my city burning. And have seen and spoken to many firefighters who are up all night long using every ounce of their strength to save our community.”
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She thanked the fire departments working to fight the blazes before highlighting the “hundreds of incarcerated firefighters” working on the Palisades and Eaton fires, saying, “They get paid almost nothing, risk their lives, some have died, to prove to the community that they have changed and are now first responders. I see them as heroes.”
Further spotlighting the low pay, she claimed that they have been paid a dollar an hour since 1984, adding that it has “never been raised with inflation. It’s never been raised when fires got worse and many died.” A recent agreement to raise it to five dollars an hour was reportedly “shot down last minute.”
Kim Kardashian shares earnest plea in support of incarcerated firefighters. pic.twitter.com/x9qj2tlkMA
— me (@heyitsme_2024) January 12, 2025
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, incarcerated firefighters earn “between $5.80 and $10.24 per day,” with an added dollar per hour during an active emergency such as the ongoing fire in L.A. It’s unclear if Kardashian was referring to the base pay rate or the active emergency pay.
Going further, Kardashian asked the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, to raise the pay rate for incarcerated firefighters to “a rate that honors a human being risking their life to save our lives and homes,” before finally praising the Ventura Training Center, which is reportedly staffed by formerly incarcerated firefighters.
The reality TV star also shared a video from the Anti-Recidivism Coalition that showcased some of the incarcerated firefighters currently fighting the fires in Los Angeles.
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