Woman's racist abuse filmed on packed train in Sydney

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/03/womans-racist-abuse-filmed-on-packed-train-in-sydney

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Police are investigating a video which has emerged online showing a middle-aged woman directing a racist and abusive tirade towards passengers on a train on the Newcastle and Central Coast line in Sydney.

The video was posted on YouTube by a user named Kareem Abdul, who writes that it was filmed at peak hour near the suburb of Strathfield during the school holidays. He writes that he began filming when the woman became aggressive toward some children aged 12 and under who refused to give up their seats for her.

“This video begins just after she had started screaming expletives into the face of the upset kids and the mother of the children got up to stand in between [them],” the description on the video says.

The woman begins to abuse a man and a woman whom she calls “Asian”.

“He can’t even get a regular girlfriend, he’s got to get a gook,” the passenger says.

When the woman referred to as an “Asian” tries to defend herself, the abusive passenger makes fun of her accent before saying: “What’s wrong with Hong Kong? Why did you come to Australia?”

She then turns her attention back towards the man, calling him “sad” and “pathetic”.

“Look at this bogan here. He’s got a gook. Isn’t it sad he can’t get a regular girl? He’s got to get an Asian.”

Other passengers are audibly offended by her comments, and the man defends the woman being abused next to him, also saying she is not his girlfriend.

The abusive woman appears unperturbed by the distress she is causing.

A NSW police spokeswoman said police were now investigating and urged witnesses to come forward who might be able to help identify the abusive passenger.

“Police take incidents such as this very seriously,” she said.

Transport for NSW tweeted: “We won’t tolerate threats to customers. We’ll work with @nswpolice to ensure customers feel safe on every journey.”

Ninemsn identified the passenger as Sue Wilkins, 55. She told ninemsn she had no excuse for her offensive attack and she was embarrassed by the footage uploaded online.

"It's not nice what I did to that lady," Wilkins said.

"It wasn't nice to say that to her because it's not nice when people say that to me ... call me white trash and fatso. I know how it hurts and I shouldn't be saying it to other people."

It is not the first time racist abuse has been recorded on Sydney’s public transport. A woman was charged last year after verbally abusing a passenger on a bus.