Gay Couple thrown out of New York Taxi Cab for hugging

[FreeState]

http://www.towleroad.com/2009/11/gay-couple-thrown-out-of-new-york-taxi-cab-for-hugging.html

A gay New York couple was kicked out of a taxi cab earlier this week for hugging, the New York Post reports.

"Paul Bruno and his partner hailed the yellow cab Monday night at 13th Street and First Avenue and sat close, Bruno told The Post. But the driver, identified by Bruno and city records as Medhat Mohamed, was apparently appalled by their shows of affection -- and pulled the cab over two blocks into the trip. 'You guys have to get out of the taxi! Hugging is not allowed in here!' the driver said, according to Bruno. Stunned, the lovebirds exited and watched the taxi peel away. 'I was shocked,' said Bruno, 27, who called the act 'discrimination against homosexuals.' The encounter took place at 10:20 p.m. after the couple attended a birthday dinner and hailed a ride to East Harlem. 'To pull over after two blocks and be so blatantly intolerant is outrageous,' Bruno said."

The Taxi and Limousine Commission says it is looking into it: "It would be considered a 'service refusal.' The first offense is a $200 to $350 fine, the second a $350 to $500 fine and a 30-day suspension, and the third strike is license revocation."

Updated comments on the article... wow.

http://www.theawl.com/2009/11/new-york-post-readers-express-sympathy-for-cab-booted-gays

[PVnRT]

1. But, we have to "respect their beliefs" and make sure they're not offended

[bluedawg12]

17. My civil rights over ride their right to NOT be offended.

Tough nuggies :(

[Behind the Aegis]

2. Not surprised by the comments.

Not surprised by the actions of the cabbie, we see it sometimes here in NOLA.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

3. color me not surprised.

[imdjh]

5. Go out and give it a spin LP. See if you can get tossed out.

What do you bet that it's a lot harder for lesbians to get thrown out of a cab for kissing than it is for men?

[ThomCat]

16. After every defeat we suffer publicly the homophobes get a bit bolder

and feel they have a right to discriminate against us any way they can. They know the general public is behind them. :(


Interesting: The word Homophobes isn't in the DU dictionary.

[imdjh]

4. Cool. Free cab rides, just don't start hugging and kissing until you are almost there.

I can only imagine what the gay guys of Manhattan will be doing to cab drivers this next week.

[Toasterlad]

19. THAT...Is An Excellent Idea.

If your cab driver doesn't toss you out, big deal: you were going to pay anyway. If he does, he cost himself some money. It's win-win!

[RetiredTrotskyite]

6. Well, Guess What?

I Don't respect their beliefs and won't until I become a first-class citizen. Anyway, what is there TO respect? They cheat, they lie, they oppress others. What's respectable about that.

[imdjh]

7. God damn southerners. Why am I not surprised?

[cm0431]

8. This was in NYC...

Not the South. Get a grip.

[mikey12561]

9. Re

I get tired of frigging bigot people. Don't they have something better else to do.

[Divine Discontent]

12. no - they have to feel some kind of power over people. they really don't believe in their religion

like good-hearted people do, they use it to control people and have been doing it forever. I would so have spit upon his face and stained him (in his mind) when I exited.

[Behind the Aegis]

10. It is called "sarcasm"...do look into it.

[imdjh]

11. I was just kidding. We don't use taxis in the South. We amble shiftlessly until we get somewhar.

[Libertas1776]

13. Are these guys actually from NY?

A real New Yorker, gay or straight, would never have just gotten out of the cab and let the bastard drive off. They should have refused to move and dialed 911 (Although, chances are the five o are no better) Start yelling and shouting and cussing and making a goddamn scene. Then again, a gruff, take no shit "New Yorker" is a dying breed.
But then again, that's just me. I would have blown my fucking top.


Also, Unfortunately, discrimination is an everyday situation for most minorities (Blacks, Hispanics, etc) since the fucking cabbies love to sail right past them.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

14. maybe they were shocked. i have balls but sometimes when something surprises me

i sometimes react in a docile way

do you know what i mean?

[hedgehog]

15. Were they wearing track suits?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6927310

[Christa]

18. A Middle-Eastern name like Medhat Mohamed

He is in all likelihood Islam and just think how they treat females.



Hypocrisy is the vaseline of political intercourse

[sui generis]

20. why do those people come to america?

if they want to live in a repressive backwater shit hole they could have just stayed where they were.

[closeupready]

21. I hope that driver gets his medallion revoked.

Amazing how people like that come here and enjoy our freedoms, and then seek to take it away from people who have lived here their whole lives. You don't like it here, you don't like gay people, pack up your shit and get the fuck out! :mad: