Black man violently dragged off Philadelphia bus by cops for not wearing a mask
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA: Authorities in Philadelphia are under pressure after a now-viral video showed an African American man being violently dragged off public transport for not wearing a mask amidst the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The incident unfolded in Philadelphia's Center City neighborhood at around 8.25 am on April 10 and was uploaded on social media by the Philly Transit Riders Union.
In the first of two clips, a supervisor from SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) can be seen telling passengers on a bus near 1100 Market Street that they cannot ride if they don't have masks while not wearing one himself.
"If you do not have a mask you can not ride public transportation," he announces, before going on to order some to get off the bus before he has to call the authorities.
One of the men he instructs to go out, while not wearing a mask, was wearing a cloth over his face. However, that wasn't enough for the supervisor, who forces him off the vehicle.
The second clip, which was the one that was viewed more than 10 million times and went viral, shows his and the Philadelphia Police Department's violent altercation with an African-American man.
A group of officers can be seen forcibly pulling him out of the bus even as he screams for them to let him go. They eventually grab him by all fours and manage to get him out, but in the process, make him drop his phone and his belongings.
He is then surrounded outside and roughed up. After he's released, he shouts expletives at them and demands the officers' badge information before going back to pick up his phone and possessions.
In a statement to the Daily Mail, the Police Department defended their actions and claimed they had responded to the scene because the bus driver had asked the passenger in question "several times".
"Philadelphia Police Department Officers arrived, and after being made aware of the driver's request, also ordered the male to leave the bus several times," said Officer Tanya Little. "The male refused, at which point he was physically removed by the officers. He was not arrested or cited."
The videos also saw many citizens question SEPTA and clarify its rules about public transport.
"@SEPTA @SEPTANews @SEPTA_SOCIAL is it really a requirement that all riders wear masks? If yes, has this requirement been widely publicized? Do the bus drivers know? Why not just refuse the rider access to the bus, or give him a mask?" one person tweeted.
"NO ONE should be kicked off transit by SEPTA police because they don't have a mask," another wrote. "@SEPTA_SOCIAL needs to immediately clarify whether wearing a mask is actually a new requirement and it needs to consider that many riders simply can't get one," read another tweet.
The confusion appeared to be over a statement the organization had released on its website where it "urged" all citizens to "wear a mask or other facial covering when traveling on SEPTA to protect customers and Operators."
It did not state doing so was compulsory. After Friday's incident, SEPTA said it would no longer enforce the policy and would not deny entry to passengers who are not wearing a mask.