From the Advocate, Gold says the picture was taken moments before the incident.
Last month singer Ari Gold reported he and his boyfriend had been harrassed on a New York commuter bus for holding hands. Gold first told his story on Facebook, it was then reported by Michael Musto in the Village Voice, and later Gold told a fuller account to The Advocate magazine. Seems the driver of a bus told Gold he and his boyfriend would have to go to the back of the bus if they wanted to hold hands.
From The Advocate:
We were in the very front row seat by the side of the driver. The driver had no reason to even be looking at us. We were not behind him disturbing him; we weren’t even in his mirror sight. All he had to do was turn his head and look at us. He was the second driver. He came on to the bus [when] they switched drivers. When he came on the bus my boyfriend and I were already sitting together, so he could have seen us when he came on. He said if you want to sit like that you can sit in the back. We told him we didn't want to. He said if we want to sit like that he'd call the state troopers and have us kicked off the bus.
And that's what the driver attempted to do. He actually called the cops to have the men ejected from the bus. Fortunately, the cop didn't comply with the driver's request, he instructed the driver that the couple was not acting illegally, and advised the driver to continue along the route. The trooper also didn't comply with Gold's request they take a police report, which is troubling.
And, every passenger on the bus got held up so this driver could have his little homophobic fit.
We now have a resolution to this story, after the fold.
On July 14, Lambda Legal wrote to the president of Short Line Bus Company, George Grieve, on behalf of Ari Gold. The letter said in part:
It seems clear that your driver would not have challenged Mr. Gold and his boyfriend—much less summoned law enforcement—had they been a heterosexual couple. Based on their sexual orientation, your driver denied them the opportunity to peacefully enjoy your company’s services and to arrive promptly at their destination. Case law shows that even though an individual may be able to engage the core function of a service and ultimately reach their destination, being subject to harassment in the course of doing so exposes the discriminating entity to liability. (See, for example, Bumpus v. New York City Transit Auth., 859 N.Y.S.2d 893 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 2008), aff'd on other grounds, 66 A.D.3d 26, 883 N.Y.S.2d 99 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dept. 2009)).
The treatment Mr. Gold and his boyfriend endured violates the laws of New York City, New York State, and New Jersey. On behalf of Mr. Gold, Lambda Legal seeks specific assurances that the driver of the bus has been appropriately disciplined, and that policies and training have been implemented to educate employees on relevant nondiscrimination law and to ensure compliance, so that no other customers encounter discriminatory treatment. Mr. Gold also requests an apology and refund of the price of his tickets, and notes that it may also be appropriate to compensate other riders who were affected by the bus driver’s actions.
Lambda Legal is today reporting:
After several telephone and email exchanges, on August 5, Lambda Legal received both oral and written confirmation from Short Line Bus Company of measures it has committed to taking throughout the company to address discrimination. The company reiterated its commitment to nondiscrimination laws and said that the driver has been disciplined and would also receive sensitivity training and training on nondiscrimination laws. The company will also mandate further antidiscrimination training for all its drivers, including annual “refreshers.” Lambda Legal is providing input on the training plan. The company also apologized for the behavior Mr. Gold and his boyfriend experienced, and will refund the cost of their tickets.
So...
☑ apology
☑ refund
☑ reprimand and training for the driver
☑ training for all drivers, and
☑ a continuing education program.
Pretty comprehensive show of penance by the company, I'd say.
Lambda Legal says:
"Lambda Legal is always prepared to go to the courts when members of the LGBT community face discrimination, but we're pleased when it doesn't have to come to that. Short Line’s swift and serious response shows this company knows that doing the right thing is also good business. "
Lambda Legal includes this statement from Gold:
"I am so grateful to Lambda Legal for helping me use my platform as a singer/songwriter and activist to bring attention to an issue that happens way too often to people whose voices don’t get heard enough. I am even more pleased that something that was initially very negative to experience has turned into something positive because of the actions taken by Short Line Bus Company to ensure that something like this will not happen again. I hope more corporations will follow suit. Maybe in the future all corporations will be held responsible for implementing their own sensitivity/harassment training and not wait for another person’s civil rights to be violated."
Companies can not be expected to police their employees full time, particularly on occasions when they work without any on-site supervisor, such as a bus driver. Unfortunate incidents will occur.
But what companies can do is be very clear with their employees what is acceptable behavior and what is intolerable, and some people will need training to understand that. Short Line Bus Company made a promise in the wake of disclosure of this incident to take it seriously, telling the Village Voice:
"I am the president of Hudson Transit Lines, Inc. which is the company known as Shortline. I wanted to assure you and your readers that we do not condone or endorse the actions taken by this one driver. His actions are not representative of the management of our Company.
"We will continue to investigate this incident until we are sure we have all the facts at which time we will take the appropriate disciplinary and remedial action. We apologize for the insensitive action of our driver and can assure you we will take the necessary steps to make sure this does not happen again.
Now, in my opinion they have made good on that promise.
So, good for them, and good for Ari for standing tall in the face of what was surely a difficult, infuriating and disappointing incident. And good for Lambda Legal for being there for the LGBT community. Everyone wins. Well, except for the bigot.
Onward to the day when lesbians will be allowed to hold hands at Gertrude Stein exhibits!