Bus driver 'followed policy,' city says after transphobic hate incident on Hamilton transit

The City of Hamilton says the driver of the Hamilton Street Rail (HSR) bus, where a man filmed himself hurling transphobic, homophobic and racist statements at passengers, "followed policy and procedure" during and after the incident. 

"Due to their location on the vehicle and ambient noises while driving, the operator was not aware of the details or severity of the incident until it became public," the city, which oversees HSR, said in a statement released Thursday. 

The city says the driver "submitted the required reporting at the end of their shift, in keeping with procedure" but it's not clear yet if that reporting included details of the incident.

The Aug. 1 incident was recorded on video and took place at the back of a bus, as it made its way to the Lawrence Road entrance to Gage Park. Hamilton resident Christopher Pretula, 41, was arrested by police Aug. 3 and charged with assault and uttering threats as a result. Hamilton police have also applied to lay a hate charge.

In the three-minute video, a man known to livestream regularly records himself as he loudly taunts, threatens and insults two passengers. He challenges one of the passengers to get off of the bus and fight him. At one point, he puts his fist in one passenger's face. 

The city's statement said the HSR has "policies and procedures in place to ensure the health and safety of customers and the operator."  

They listed a two-way radio, an automatic vehicle locator and a silent alarm system as some of the safety features of the bus. The city's statement did not say if any of these features were used during the incident. 

The city's statement also laid out HSR driver's abilities to remove disorderly passengers and deny service. 

'There are a lot more conversations to have'

City staff, as well as representatives from the HSR, met with members of the Hamilton Anti-Racism Resource Centre (HARRC) to discuss how the incident went uninterrupted by the driver, and how to move forward. 

"We recognized after seeing that video that there were questions regarding the reporting of this hateful, transphobic incident that occurred on transit," HARRC executive director Lyndon M. George told CBC Hamilton Thursday.

George said that the meeting with the city and HSR is the first in what he hopes will be an ongoing discussion of how to address racist, homophobic and transphobic harassment on public transit.

"It was an initial conversation, and there are a lot more conversations to have," he said. 

George said that when hateful incidents like this occur, the response should go beyond reporting to HARRC and the HSR. He said that city officials have a responsibility to speak up against hate speech. 

Ward 3 Coun. Nrinder Nann said on Twitter the "display of hate, vitriol, intimidation, harassment and violence is unacceptable."

Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger said, in the city's statement, "Working together with community partners, the city will continue to find ways to ensure all community spaces are always a welcoming experience for everyone."

Upon hearing of the arrest Wednesday, a representative of Speqtrum, a local youth-focused LGBTQ group, told CBC Hamilton solutions to hate need to come from the community. 

"We need transformative justice in order for people unlearn hate. Addressing hate crimes and hate incidents requires a systemic overhaul and community driven approaches," the group said. 

George said that HARRC would also like to see city-run organizations in Hamilton, like HSR, work toward improving their responses to hate.

He said that part of this work includes better informing the community on how to respond when witnessing hateful harassment in public spaces.

"You can't watch that video and not think, 'What could we have done better?'" he said.