Amtrak Engineer Identified As Gay; Tea People Now Gathering Pitch Forks

According to reports, the engineer of the Amtrak train that derailed Tuesday night near Philadelphia, Brandon Bostian, is openly gay.

For that reason alone, the Tea People are gathering with their pitch forks.

From Heavy.com:

Brandon Bostian was the engineer of an Amtrak train that derailed Tuesday night in north Philadelphia after barreling toward a sharp turn at speeds greater than 100 miles per hour, more than double the speed limit for the area.

The crash killed at least 7 people and injured more than 200, officials said.

The New York resident survived the crash, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, as did the train’s conductor, who has not been named. Bostian was taken to the hospital and received 14 staples to close a laceration on his head, and was initially interviewed by police there, saying he didn’t remember much, according to ABC 6.

He said he moved to New York from San Francisco and had been active in the Proposition 8 fight.

“It’s kind of insulting to have to beg people for my right to marry,” he told the newspaper. “I feel like we shouldn’t even have to have this fight.”

GotNews, which first reported his name, called him a “gay activist,” and many Twitter users have reacted negatively to his sexuality, claiming he may have been a “diversity” hire by the government-funded Amtrak.

Check the tweets from folks that are already on the attack.

.@6LambsMom @ChuckCJohnson Issue is whether Diversity hiring put an unqualified incompetent in charge, resulting in needless deaths.

— John Rivers (@JohnRiversToo) May 13, 2015

Gays have a higher rate of mental illness than do straights. You decide if engineer's homosexuality is worth noting. I report it. #Amtrak188

— Charles C. Johnson (@ChuckCJohnson) May 13, 2015

Should I publish the naked pictures of #BrandonBostian or is that too much? #Amtrak

— Charles C. Johnson (@ChuckCJohnson) May 13, 2015