A man seen in a viral video yelling racist language at a motorist after an accident in California's Central Valley has been identified as a firefighter with the Alameda County Fire Department, which has placed the firefighter on leave.
The crash happened Friday morning on Highway 99 between Armstrong Road and Harney Lane in Lodi, the driver who shot the video told KCRA. The video, shot from Vath Touch's car, shows another man approaching Touch's driver's window to argue about who was at fault.
During the argument, Touch tells the man, “The police are coming,” to which the man replies, “Oh, the police are definitely coming, stupid Mexican… or whatever the hell you are, Filipino.”
The man later says to Touch, “I hope you're insured, I doubt it… you'll probably be doing some gardening.”
Touch says, “Don't be racist, brother. Don't be racist.”
The man responded, “I'm not a f***ing racist. I'm a f***ing firefighter,” while pointing to a Stockton Fire Department logo on his t-shirt. The man also told Touch to “go back to his $10 job, bitch.”
As the argument continues and the man approaches Touch's face, Touch tells him, “Don't spit on me,” to which the man responds, “I'm going to spit on you all damn day.” As Touch holds his hand up in front of him, the man slaps Touch's hand and says, “Get your hand out of my damn face.”
Fire departments react to viral video
On Sunday evening, after the video went viral, the Stockton Firefighters Union social media account released a statement saying “Just to be clear, this is not a firefighter from Stockton, California. We don't know who this is, but it's definitely not one of us.”
Later Sunday evening, the Alameda County Fire Department acknowledged that the video showed “a verbal dialogue between one of our members and a member of the community.”
“We noticed that language was used during this interaction that is inconsistent with the values and standards we hold as an organization,” it said in a post on Facebook.
Alameda County Fire Chief William McDonald issued a statement saying, “Our department is committed to gathering all the facts and we are handling this situation in a manner that reflects our commitment to integrity, professionalism and community trust. Our goal is to ensure we continue to serve our community with the highest level of respect, both on and off duty.”
Firefighter faces disciplinary action; incident is being investigated
At a press conference Monday morning, McDonald said the unidentified firefighter involved, who was off-duty at the time of the incident, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation into the incident.
McDonald also said the investigation will include a critical look at the department's training, counseling and organizational culture.
“We are taking immediate steps to improve relations with our community, including enhanced sensitivity training for all members of the department,” McDonald said. “In addition, we are implementing mechanisms to measure our progress and foster a more inclusive and respectful environment.”
He added: “I can't say it enough; this person's actions do not reflect the values of this department. We value community and relationships and we know our strength lies in community.”
The Bay Area chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement Monday condemning the racist tirade.
“We are deeply disturbed by the blatant racism displayed in this video,” said Zahra Billoo, executive director of CAIR-SFBA. “The firefighter's statements are not only reprehensible, but also indicative of a broader problem of unchecked bias in the public service.”
