In a shocking revelation that has ignited widespread outrage, Chief Beverly Banks of the Atlanta VA Medical Center Police Department was suspended after an honest audio recording captured her giving an opinion making discriminatory remarks during a staff meeting. The recording, obtained by the FOX 5 I-Team, reveals Chief Banks explicitly stating her reluctance to hire Black or Hispanic female officers, citing unfounded stereotypes about their attitudes.

The incriminating audio from the September 13, 2023, command staff meeting paints a troubling picture of the leadership at the Atlanta VA Medical Center. “I am to the point… I don’t want to hire black women no more,” Banks can be heard saying. “I ain’t got no white women beating down my door to come in and work. But I wish they would. Cause I don’t have these problems.”

Chief Banks, who is herself Black, did not stop at targeting Black women. She extended her offensive comments to Hispanic women as well. “I don’t have no Hispanic women. Hell, I don’t want them neither. Cause you know what comes with it? A whole of lot of f—–g attitude. And I don’t want it. I’m the only one with an attitude in this place. Me.”

A long time ago, I made friends with an up and coming black Civil Servant who worked in the U.S. Department of State’s Personnel Financial Management center. We were both young junior members of the Department of State. Over a period of nearly two decades, we kept in touch in a variety of ways as we rose in rank and responsibility.

I was working in the Supply Division as the head of a multi-million Motor Vehicles acquisition program located in an office in Virginia a couple of blocks from where my friend was working. Through merit, he had worked his way up to be the head of that unit with about two hundred subordinate civil servants, mostly black residents of the District of Columbia.

I had earlier worked as a Human Resources Officer and had been very effective at my job.

One day, he phoned me and asked to meet with him for lunch. Always ready for lunch out, I agreed. It was a nice bread from my everyday duties. During our lunch, he confided that he was frustrated in his new job because several of the (I won’t repeat his derogatory language) people working for him were abusive intentional under performers.

My friend asked me for guidance on how to fire those workers who were making him and the Financial center look bad and get some serious criticism from senior officials, etc. He wanted to fire (derogatory) and replace them with white workers who he claimed would be more productive. He asked me because I had expertise in such matters.

I did help him over a period of months and he successfully ridded his office of the worst of the bad apples, (which also got the attention of others whose performance picked up). The morale of the unit improved and criticism of his department went away. He became a happy camper.

Chief Beverly Banks used the wrong verbiage and got fired for wanting to do a better job.

Our federal workforce is mucked up and full of bad apples. Demands for performing one’s job can ham responsible supervisors irreparably.