Young Man Reports Being Assaulted by Homophobic Bus Driver in São Paulo

SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – A young man says that the bus driver ordered him to get off the bus when he saw him kissing another boy and then got out of the vehicle and assaulted him.

Actor Marcello Santanna, 23, told G1 news site that he was a victim of homophobia and was assaulted by a bus driver on Saturday morning, September 7th, in Cidade Líder, in São Paulo‘s East Zone.

According to Santanna, the driver stopped the bus and told him to get off after he saw the actor giving another boy little pecks on his lips. The actor left the vehicle. Then the driver got down from the bus and punched him in the face. The case happened on Avenida Maria Luiza Americano.

“I refused [to get off], said that I had paid [for the ride], and asked what would be the reason for me to leave. He then got up and at the same time I decided not to create an argument and said goodbye to this boy and my cousin,” he said.

“When I got down from the bus, I raised my hands and said, “It’s okay, I’m going away,” he already came in with punches, without me even having time to finish talking. The boy and my cousin came down to help me, the driver got back into the bus and left”.

According to the young man, another bus of the same line came by soon after. The driver of the second bus took him to the police station, where Santanna was instructed to seek immediate medical attention. His cousin and the other boy accompanied him. “They were very helpful at the police station and they took us to Santa Marcelina Hospital”, he said.

The boy intends to return to the police station to register the police report.

In a note, SPTrans, which manages the public transportation system in São Paulo, stated that “it has already forwarded the case to the company that operates the line to identify the driver and take the appropriate measures in relation to the employee”.

Santanna said he had never experienced such a situation before and encourages people to report homophobic behavior.