A Massachusetts bus driver has been fired for telling a prospective passenger he was passed by for a ride because he was black.
Kevin Brooks, a barber from New Bedford, told a local news outlet he was trying to take the bus home from Martha’s Vineyard this week when the vehicle inexplicably failed to stop. The Martha’s Vineyard Transportation Authority (VTA) said the bus was full, but the driver failed to turn on the exterior sign saying so.
Trying to make a ferry home, Mr Brooks said he took an Uber to his destination, where he arrived shortly after the bus.
There, he approached the driver and asked why he had been passed by. The driver initially said the bus was at capacity, but changed his tune when Mr Brooks challenged him.
“Well, it’s because you’re black,” the driver said.
Mr Brooks said he was stunned by the interaction.
“I am from the south. If I feel racism I deal with it. For the first time in my life I had to swallow it,” told MV Times. ”I’ve never felt more disrespected or belittled in my life. I had trouble sleeping that night.”
The VTA confirmed Mr Brooks’ account, saying it had reviewed video footage of the incident.
“The VTA and their operating company, Transit Connection Inc … have a zero tolerance policy for this type of behaviour,” the VTA said in a statement. “The vehicle operator involved in this incident has been terminated from employment, effective immediately.”
Mr Brooks said he did not want to take the driver’s livelihood away, but felt he had to stand up for what is right. He said he had also contacted the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and was considering a lawsuit over the incident.
“The video shows everything, that’s all I’ll say,” he said. “This isn’t over, I want to get this out there.”
