Self-segregation

Submitted by Pat (United States), Oct 12, 2006 at 09:21

I see no reason why cab drivers who object to carrying alcohol or dogs in their cabs can't form their own company and advertise that restriction. Who knows? They might find a lot of takers, and not just in the Muslim community. Reformed alcoholics might not even wish to see bottles of liquor and they could do the same. As a matter of business, self-segregation is fine. If you can find a large enough pool of customers within a restricted (whether ethnic or behavioral) group to keep yourself afloat, have at it.

Here the airport was offering to segregate the drivers and it is wrong, even if the drivers themselves request it. The airport allows them to operate with the understanding that they will take the next fare to come out the door. Imagine the Muslim community's reaction if a Jewish driver refused to take a family because the woman wore a hijab. As you say, they have a license. If they can't abide by the terms of that license (or the implied agreement they make with an employer to drive his cab) then they need to find another line of work.

If taxi drivers are allowed to continue to refuse fares based on the passenger's baggage, they will endanger the financial welfare of all cabdrivers, because people will be unwilling to risk not finding a cab and will turn to alternate means of transportation. Muslim cabdrivers may have started this, but it need not end with them. Accommodating their demands could lead us down the proverbial slippery slope. Today it's alcohol. What will be the excuse tomorrow?

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