Two friends kicked out of taxi for being gay

[left-of-center2012]

Two gay friends from Philadelphia were kicked out of a taxi when their driver said he didn’t want “that gay s**t in my car.”

The incident happened shortly after midnight on March 16th, when Joel Bautista and Michael Rios – who live close to each other – hailed a taxi to get back to their neighborhood after spending the evening in a bar. The pair briefly discussed their love lives and then moved on to talking about Lasik surgery when the driver pulled over and ordered them out of his car.

Rios took a photo of the man’s driver certificate before he drove away, and the next morning Bautista lodged a complaint with the Philadelphia Parking Authority. The agency acted swiftly. They received the complaint at 10am that morning, and by 2.30pm, they had the driver in for an interview.

The driver’s story shifted several times. First, he claimed that the men had “talked dirty” in his car, and then he claimed that they had propositioned him. Finally, he claimed that the men asked him to pull over early, and then suggested that they had refused to pay their fare.

Bautista and Rios were horrified, and told the Philly Inquirer that they “didn’t want to interfere with his livelihood,” and said they “just wanted him to know that what he did was wrong.” “But when we heard about the lies he was telling, we said, ‘No, we want to go to court.’”

At an administrative hearing on July 12th, the driver was fined $175 and had his driver’s certificate suspended for 30 days.

https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2018/07/31/gay-friends-kicked-out-of-taxi/

[appalachiablue]

1. What they experienced is nasty bigotry and discrimination.

Best of luck obtaining justice through the courts.

And people dismiss the impact of Fox & Hate Radio for 30 years, fueling more hate & aggression on top of basic human ignorance and prejudice.

[AlexSFCA]

2. we should never be silent and push back against discrimination

no matter how small. Confronting someone directly is probably waste of time and can be dangerous; I always like to see folks pursuing legal routes as it has much bigger effect.

[Initech]

3. #Civility