Tennessee Railway Conductor Speaks Out After He’s Fired Over ‘Patriotic Statement’

It sounds like the kind of story that might come out of Berkeley or Portland, but a Chattanooga railway conductor says he was fired for delivering some patriotic thoughts during a recent ride.

The comments were shared on social media, resulting in his employer issuing an apology to the public and a pink slip to him.

Fox News provided this report:

Local ABC affiliate WTVC NewsChannel 9 reported Monday that the part-time conductor was fired after a TikTok video posted by Nathan Scherer captured him saying, “To the very, very few Americans in here, happy Independence Day. To the rest of you, welcome to the greatest country on the face of the planet, and if you disagree, you can leave.”

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In the video, a person can be heard responding, “Shut up.” The part-time conductor was identified as Jack Peterson.

The Incline Railway, which first opened in 1887, is owned and operated by the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) and is a part of Lookout Mountain Attractions, was given the video and News 9 reported that a director at the Incline Railway “met with the employee that day and immediately fired him.”

In a statement shared by News 9, the company confirmed Peterson’s dismissal.

Scott Wilson, CARTA’s chief of staff, was quoted as saying, “I want to apologize directly to the passengers who experienced this, and to everyone who has seen the video and felt its sting. It should never have happened.”

The incident attracted significant social media engagement, with many users asserting that CARTA’s response was unjustified:

Incline Railway conductor in Tennessee has been fired for “demeaning language” after 4th of July footage of him went viral.

“To the very, very few Americans in here, happy Independence Day,” the conductor said.

“To the rest of you, welcome to the greatest country on the face of… pic.twitter.com/VPnIY2P4Tv

— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 7, 2026

A fundraiser has been started for Jack Peterson, the Tennessee Incline Railway conductor who was fired after telling his passengers that “America is the greatest country on the planet” and that they could “leave if they disagree.”

You know what to do. pic.twitter.com/1lFhaVciqA

— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) July 8, 2026

🚨#BREAKING: A train conductor in Chattanooga TN has been FIRED after he told passengers on July 4th:

"Welcome to the GREATEST COUNTRY on the face of the planet, and if you disagree, YOU CAN LEAVE! To the very, VERY few Americans in here, Happy Independence Day!"

Passengers on… pic.twitter.com/9VLpVNp4XR

— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) July 7, 2026

Here’s the full text of the post above:

A train conductor in Chattanooga TN has been FIRED after he told passengers on July 4th:

“Welcome to the GREATEST COUNTRY on the face of the planet, and if you disagree, YOU CAN LEAVE! To the very, VERY few Americans in here, Happy Independence Day!”

Passengers on the train were so offended, they sent the video to man’s employer, and he was FIRED ON THE SPOT!!!

When the train conductor was reached for comment he responded by saying:

“I’m very patriotic. It was the USA’s Independence Day. I was celebrating with my fellow Americans (native or non-native).

I truly DO believe we are the greatest country on earth.

My statement about if you don’t like the country and don’t believe we are the best then you can leave is a freedom of the USA that many other countries do not have.

It is not a racist or xenophobic thing to say. If you don’t believe in making this country better then why are you here?”

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Passengers on the train were apparently offended by the statements he made and he was promptly fired.

As AOL reported, Peterson had this response:

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Peterson said, “I think that CARTA as a company has a lot of thinking to do when it comes to supporting this country. I do not believe my firing was a correct or just one. My personal thought is, what has this country come to when someone can get fired on Independence Day for a patriotic statement.”

Peterson said he started a GoFundMe due to the support he has received since the incident went viral.

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