Today a bus driver and passenger called me a spastic.

[Deleted User]

Has anyone reported it as a Hate Crime? If so, was it taken seriously by police?

[Deleted User]

Hi, today I got called a spastic by a bus passenger and the driver. The lanyards for face cover exception leave you vulnerable. Mine's a sensory defect. Do the police take this Hate Crime seriously. Has anyone else had trouble through revealing their disability? And any advice on how to get the driver sacked? It was an Arriva bus.

Lisatho11987777

It's hard to prove they will probably say they didn't say it but it's still worth putting the complaint into the bus company stating the day time and bus number a route 

[Deleted User]

Many thanks Lisa and Mike. It's classed as a hate crime. The bus driver encouraged the passengers to humiliate me. Two women near the driver complied. One said she was going to "smash my face in". I called her bluff. So it turned into, "If my brother was here he'll grab her by her scrawny neck". The driver allowed insults at me but if I defended myself he started bellowing. 
A kind gentleman from the back came down to the front; handed me my purse that was on the floor. The second troublemaking passenger said, he shouldn't have given it to me. Hideous people. 
When I asked for the driver's number on alighting, he called me "old and ugly", I'm 32. The police are phoning tomorrow for a telephone statement. An operator took down the whole sad story on Saturday. The driver committed a hate crime, whilst the passenger he encouraged is faced with threatening assault.
I phoned Scope this morning for a back up letter, on the presumption of my email to the CEO of Arriva. No was the answer. No support at all. What is Scope for? These charities make a lot of money and directors earn £40,000.
Thank God we can support each other. Thank you again. I will update you all, just in case you're unfortunate enough to suffer the same depressing experience. Ps. Mike, I shall absorb your advice in fine detail. Many thanks for writing so extensively.

[Deleted User]

Ps. Hi, Lisa, the operator said the police (Thames Valley) will be getting the CCTV. Fortunately the driver was very expressive with his hands and they all had contorted faces, that usually accompany hatred. Why? Some individuals like to argue and win to feel superior. Pitiful. However, if they don't get the woman, unless the Police recognise her, I'll keep pushing until that driver is sacked. Thanks for your time. 

[Deleted User]

Excuse me. I wasn't a pain in the ****. And Scope could have written a supporting letter. I don't appreciate your dig. I had enough on Saturday. The police deemed it a hate crime. (Removed by a moderator for being a ersonal attack / comment towards another member)

[Deleted User]

And I've flagged your comment for the dig and contradicting the Police. Go to .......

Ross_Alumni

Closed, pending moderator review.

Ross_Alumni

Hi @Abigail_Buchanan

Firstly, welcome to the community and I'm sorry to hear about what you went through over the weekend, it sounds horrible and nobody should have to experience that. You are doing the correct thing in reporting the incident, and as mentioned previously on the thread seeking legal advice might be worthwhile, Citizens Advice have an information page here about finding legal help.

Travelling on public transport should be a safe space for everybody, and what you went through sounds very intimidating, I hope you have support from friends and family members at this time and I'm glad to hear that the police have taken your concern and will be acting on it. 

I also wanted to address the comment from @Username_removed which has caused you upset. I can see why you would read that and perceive it to be calling your version of events into question, especially considering what you have been through lately and how it has impacted your well-being. But I think this is a misunderstanding, I'm sure that mike wasn't intending to upset you and was instead just writing how a situation could be perceived from a legal point of view. He presented a hypothetical scenario in which language used, while not being nice in the slightest, may not be considered a hate crime in law. I don't believe he was suggesting you were being a pain.

Just to let you know, I have removed comments of yours from this discussion in line with our community house rules, as well as a portion of another of your comments, for being a personal attack towards another member. However as mentioned, I do understand why you might have felt as though your version of events was being called into question. 

You do have our full support, and I hope you receive all the help you need to fight against what happened to you. I'm sorry that Scope wasn't able to provide assistance, but I hope that you have found some of the replies from community members helpful.

I will be leaving this discussion closed but will be contacting you via email @Abigail_Buchanan, you are more than welcome to get back to us and have a chat. Also, I do hope to see you continue to be a part of the online community.