Disabled man captures 3 hours of mocking, staring while travelling Toronto

TORONTO – Toronto comedian Andre Arruda recently had a friend videotape him travelling around Toronto for three hours, during which he says he was the target of over 100 instances of verbal street harassment and hundreds of “uncomfortable stares.”

“I always get the weirdest reactions from people and I’ve always wanted to show my friends what the hell happens to me when I’m just doing everyday things,” he said at the beginning of the video, posted in response to a New York City video that also captured street harassment.

Arruda is called a “leprechaun,” “mini-me,” and asked if he can tie someone’s shoes during the roughly two-minute long video.

Other people stare or comment between themselves that “he’s so small” or “he’s so cute.”

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READ MORE:  Woman gets harassed 108 times in video, receives violent threats online

Arruda has Morquio syndrome, a genetic disorder that makes it difficult for him to walk; the syndrome is also associated with dwarfism.

The comedian says he made the video to show the public the multiple types of harassment people face who are perceived to be “different.”

“I get (harassed) so often that it just rolls off my back now,” Arruda told Global News. “There are so many types (of harassment), it’s not just the women. It’s for anyone who is perceived different. People don’t really know how to react to someone like me.”

Arruda said he hopes the video helps to change the attitudes of people on the street who encounter someone like himself.

“I want people to think ‘I’m a human being, I’m not an object.’ Treat me like you would say your brother,  your friend or a family member you like.”