Depending on whom you ask, the story begins with a fall-induced brain injury. Or perhaps it begins with a public performer consumed by his rogue alter ego. Some may say the only beginning that matters is the moment that two young women were mercilessly harassed on the subway. Frankly, none of these beginnings offer consolation. The story of David Zancai, popularly known in downtown Toronto as Zanta, is a labyrinth of personal tragedy, sexual harassment, increasingly decentralized mental health care and citizen intervention.

According to a Facebook post by Sarah Beamish that went viral in late September, Zancai entered a crowded TTC subway train spewing sexist admonishments with a banner featuring the naked legs of an anonymous woman trailing behind him. He proceeded to do pushups, stormed through the aisles, and warned women against enticing rapists with revealing clothing before fixating on one young woman who appeared to be around 17 years old. He took issue with her form-fitting workout apparel and made offensive comments about her appearance. When Zancai threatened to take a nonconsensual photo of her, the young woman succumbed to tears. That’s when Beamish stepped in. From there the incident spiraled downwards. The two young women attempted to switch cars while being pursued by Zancai. A yelling match ensued. Passengers remained mostly silent.

Stay up to date! Get Current Affairs & Documentaries email updates in your inbox every morning.

It’s no wonder Beamish felt the need to share this experience with her social media network. Perhaps she was looking for support or sought to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual harassment of women in public—and the lack of willingness on the public’s part to call it out when they see it. Whatever her intent, this story raises yet another transit equity discussion.

Although David Zancai’s behaviour clearly constitutes sexual harassment and is simply horrifying, there’s nothing simple about him.

In 2000, Zancai survived a harrowing 25-foot fall while working as a painter. He emerged from a coma, but began to experience bouts of mania. Soon after, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder. After a public shirtless Santa performance his alter ego, Zanta, emerged. Since that time he’s engaged in what could be described as a series of public space performances: working out atop police cruisers, disrupting live news broadcasts and infiltrating street festivals.

His conduct has been met with mixed reactions. He’s been banned from numerous public spaces (including the TTC) while concurrently revered as an urban cult legend. Although some of his behaviours are profoundly concerning, individuals such as Zancai are equally entitled to occupy public space.

Since the 1980s and ’90s Canadian health care systems adopted what’s generally referred to as an integrated model of mental health care. This more inclusive and respectful model followed years of a profoundly problematic institutional system, which kept people living with mental health conditions locked away in remote areas, and in many instances, violated their human rights. Today, service providers collaborate to deliver mental health services in community settings, and stigma reduction campaigns have been launched to foster greater acceptance.

This shift has increased the number of people living with mental health conditions navigating the public realm. In fact, numerous public health bodies, from the Substance and Mental Health Services Administration in the U.S. to the Canadian Mental Health Association, report that that accessible public transportation is the linchpin in the integration model as it connects these individuals to neighbourhoods, services, recreation, and professional opportunities.

However, as with all progressive change, there are challenges. Individuals living with mental health conditions often feel overwhelmed, tired, anxious and/or judged while travelling. Services and infrastructure issues such as vehicle delays, poor acoustics and unclear wayfinding compound their already difficult commute. These passengers are often hard to properly support because of the often invisible nature of mental conditions, and also because they are twice as likely to abuse substances. Conversely, their fellow commuters often experience fear and discomfort when confronted with behaviours emanating from mental conditions such as pacing, yelling, delusions—and in some instances, vocalizing unacceptable “isms.” Sadly, it is also true that many passengers and public transit operators still harbor negative stereotypes about people living with mental health conditions.

While working on public engagement and space planning initiatives, I've had to respectfully challenge popular mental health myths. Well-intended, and otherwise knowledgeable people, from various professions and stakeholder groups, still believe that individuals living with mental health issues are violent, weak-willed, and unproductive. Conflate these factors with vulnerabilities faced by both women and individuals living with mental health conditions, and it’s next to impossible to know how to intervene in instances like the Zancai-Beamish skirmish.

Generally, when fellow passengers are loud, pacing, or speaking to themselves, compassion and a good iPhone playlist may be the best recourse for avoiding escalation and undue judgmental behaviour. In the case of Zancai, he crossed a line when he infiltrated the personal space of a youth and threatened to take a photo of what he deemed inappropriate clothing. And while I admire Sarah Beamish’s courage, I’m concerned that she placed herself in a direct line of danger. Safety on public transit is a shared responsibility. A couple of men could have calmly voiced opposition or perhaps someone could have discretely pushed the emergency button. Increasingly, bystander intervention is becoming recognized as a good strategy for addressing sexual harassment in public. While most people hesitate, the few who intervene help to discourage victim blaming, positively shifts our understanding of social norms, and reduces feelings of disempowerment.

That said, I wasn’t present and there are no easy answers, as we are amid a new normal in the public realm. What I do know is that the demands on public transit providers, and by extension commuters, are increasingly complex because social issues are outrunning policy, staff training, public education and infrastructure.

As for Zancai’s behaviour and the incident, I concur with Sarah Beamish when she writes: “I’m not mad at him, I’m mad at the situation.”

After establishing a career as a corporate communications director and public engagement specialist, Jay Pitter earned a Master in Environmental Studies and now focuses on urban socio-spatial design challenges.

Image credit: flickr.com / Kyle MacDonald