The 57 Bus

The 57 Bus

by

Dashka Slater

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The 57 Bus makes teaching easy.

The 57 Bus: Part 3: The Interview, Part 3 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
The police show Richard “a short snippet of the video,” and then they ask him why he did it. He tells them he was “being stupid.” They ask him what he was thinking, and he tells them “nothing.” The police continue. “Was it because the dude was wearing a dress?” they ask. Richard answers, “I’m homophobic. I don’t like gay people.” The police ask Richard if his friends influenced him. He says no, but he didn’t think the skirt would catch fire like that, either. As the officer fills out the paperwork, he writes “DURING SUSP INTERVIEW, THE SUSP STATED HE DID IT BECAUSE HE WAS HOMOPHOBIC.”
Richard’s lawyer later discovers that Richard doesn’t fully understand the meaning of the word homophobic; however, Richard still targets Sasha because of their skirt, and this reflects the widespread discrimination of LGBTQ individuals. Still, the police care very little whether Richard understands or not, and this further proof that Richard should not be treated like an adult.
Themes
Adolescent Crime vs. Adult Crime Theme Icon
Discrimination and Social Justice Theme Icon