Waterloo realtor loses job over homophobic slur caught on video
But Jeff Blackham has since apologized and taken steps to educate himself and learn from his 'mistake'
Article content
A Waterloo Region realtor has lost his job after he was allegedly caught on video using a homophobic slur during a heated exchange with a woman in Cambridge last Friday.
The video posted on reddit by user odausrel was titled, “Passionate local realtor Jeff Blackham,” and showed a man yelling while walking away from a woman who is out of the frame.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Waterloo realtor loses job over homophobic slur caught on video Back to video
tap here to see other videos from our team.
The woman, Lisa Di Pasqua, told CTV News that she was on a call and about to pull into her driveway when she was allegedly told by a man to move because he was shooting video of a property and she was blocking it with her car in the driveway.
When the man enters the frame of the video while walking, you can hear him say: “First you run your mouth, shut the f— up!”
“No!” the woman who is out of the frame responds, before saying to someone else, “You heard that right? As a witness?”
“F— you,” the man shouts back. “How’s that for a witness you f—ing d–e!”
Blackham’s realtor company, Keller Williams Innovation, confirmed in a statement posted on Instagram on Saturday that they had terminated him after saying a day earlier that they were launching an internal review.
“Following a thorough internal review of the recent incident involving one of our agents – captured and shared publicly – we have made the decision to terminate their affiliation with our brokerage, effectively immediately,” the company said in the statement.
“Discriminatory or hateful behavior has no place in our office, our industry, in our community,” the company added.
A reddit posting by Appropriate_Duty_930 shared Blackham’s online apology: “After receiving 6 F bombs directed at me, I got upset and said something inappropriate. Not at all how I feel and I do apologize. I was shooting a video and reacted out of character and sincerely apologize for the decision.”
RECOMMENDED VIDEO
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Blackham also reportedly addressed his “serious mistake” in a written statement provided to CTV News.
“I used language that was wrong, hurtful, and completely unacceptable,” he wrote. “I take full responsibility for my words and the harm they have caused, particularly to members of the LGBTQ+ community.”
“I recognize the impact of my actions and deeply regret the pain and disappointment this has caused. As someone who values respect, inclusion and professionalism, I am committed to doing better,” Blackham wrote, explaining he has since taken steps to educate himself by “enrolling in a comprehensive equity and inclusion training program.”
“I am truly sorry, and I am committed to learning and making meaningful change,” he added.
Di Pasqua told CTV News the situation could’ve been avoided and she didn’t want Blackham to lose his job, she just wanted him to “take accountability.”
“All he had to say was, ‘I’m a real estate agent. I’m shooting a video.’ I would have gone around the corner or something.”
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.