buspromo

Officials in Albany are investigating after three black female college students say a group of white men and women harassed them aboard a city bus.

(Capital District Transportation Authority)

Albany, N.Y. — Video of a fight on an Albany bus over the weekend is sparking debate about whether the incident was racially motivated, according to the Albany Times Union.

Three black female students at SUNY Albany said 10 to 12 white men and women harassed and attacked them on a Capital District Transportation Authority bus on Saturday. The Albany Police Department began investigating the incident as a possible hate crime after the students said racial slurs were used during the assault.

The Times Union obtained video of the incident before it was taken down from Instagram, the paper said. The clip does not show the whole series of events and mainly depicts a one-on-one altercation at the back of the bus.

The video shows a woman throwing punches at another as an onlooker tries to pull them apart. Shouting drowns out much of what is said during the fight.

The incident occurred around 1 a.m. Saturday. The three students got into an argument with the other passengers involved before the fight broke out, according to the Times Union.

One woman told police that several men kicked her after she fell to the floor. The students went to Albany Medical Center to be evaluated, the paper said.

Two of them had minor scrapes on their faces.

Several hundred people showed up to a rally at the university Monday to listen to a talk by Asha Burwell, one of the women who said she was attacked, the Times Union said.

"We are shocked, upset, but we will remain unbroken," Burwell said, according to the paper. "We stand here with strength because we value our worth as black women and as human beings in general."

Some students questioned whether the attack was truly motivated by race, according to the Times Unions. Others noted that the buses are frequently rowdy late at night.

Police are still investigating.

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Google + | 315-454-2112