A Wellington rail employee, who kicked a girl off a train after she launched a racist tirade at a fellow passenger, says more people need to stand up to racism.
Train manager JJ Phillips has been hailed as a hero after she stopped her train to deal with a teenager who she claims was yelling at a fellow passenger, telling them to leave the country.
When Phillips pulled the lever, she was putting a stop to more than just the train.
"We don't condone this type of behaviour here in New Zealand," Phillips told Newshub.
Phillips was working on an Upper Hutt-bound train earlier this week when a teenager started yelling abuse at a man who was having conversations in Hindi.
"She didn't like another language being spoken, so she kept telling him to f**k off back to his own country," Phillips explains.
As the girl's racist rant continued, Phillips pulled the emergency brake and called police.
"I said to her, 'You're getting off, you're getting off at this station'. She refused, and so I said, 'Well, this train isn't moving until you are gone'."
The ordeal delayed the train by 20 minutes, but Phillips was applauded by passengers who witnessed the abuse.
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Phillips told passengers the racist outburst brought back emotions she felt after the Christchurch mosque attacks.
Her actions have earned her morning tea with Wellington Mayor Justin Lester, and a nomination for the city's Civic Safety award.
"If good people don't stand up and take action then bad things can happen, so it's important that people like JJ stand up for what's right," Lester told Newshub.
Despite being overwhelmed by the response to her actions, Phillips said she would easily do it again - and others should speak up too.
"I was just doing my job, so I didn't expect any of this, I'm really surprised. We shouldn't put up with this sort of thing," she says.
It's a humble response from a train manager, doing her bit to grind racism to a halt.
Newshub.
