Tamsir Drammeh, a New York cabbie, has been hit with a $350 fine after he refused to allow a mother to sit in the front seat after she and her family piled into his cab at Penn Station. Drammeh reportedly said that the husband could sit in the front seat but that having a woman in the sit would violate Islamic values.
We have previously discussed such conflicts with Muslim taxi drivers and others such as the case where Muslim drivers refused to drive people bringing bottles of wine or alcohol from the airport.
The driver in this case said that Islam bars him from being so close to a female stranger, a position rejected by many Muslims. Notably, one Muslim driver said that he could allowed her in the front seat but could refuse her if she was “wearing a skirt hiked up to here” and then “He wouldn’t have her in the front, but only if she is alone.” Even that is a rather curious and arbitrary rule for women to have to deal with in trying to determine when their dress barred them from sitting in the front seat of a taxi.
Notably, this was a mother who got into the taxi with her two children and husband. However, Drammeh still considered her sitting in front to be an affront to Islam.
In contesting the fine, Drammeh found himself facing Judge Laura Fieber, who ruled “That his religion did not allow him to sit next to a woman is not an acceptable defense in an occupation that is operated to serve the public. Of significance, respondent made it clear that the husband would be welcome in the front seat, while the wife/complainant would not be.”
Despite his discrimination against women, Drammeh was only suspended for a day.
Source: NY Post
Janet Jackson received a hefty fine from a government agency for her wardrobe malfunction but male entertainers can do the same thing without any legal penalty at all.
Do you think the Muslims are censoring our Super Bowl games also? It sounds like Sharia Law!
I’m in Detroit…we have cabs with and without the screens. Front seating isn’t that unusual when there’s a group of 3+. Neighborhood does make a difference on how many without screens however. Inner city expect screens, bullet proof glass and more…with a tiny money hole for payment.
It parallels dimwits in pharmacies who whine about administering the morning-after pill because it goes against their version of nonsense. Get another job then.
Of course what’s interesting in this case is that he’s not actually required to have ANYBODY in his front seat.
You can sit in the front seat of a cab? Too many movies for me…..i thot there was a screen! Anyhow….rear seats are the Safest crash wise. I wanna know why hubbie put her up front …. in the unsafest spot? It may have been against driver’s religion but it may also be against a lot of other non- religious man’ s notion of chivalry. We get to hung up on “my religion”… Each makes up his own i guess. Too bad we just can’ t get along…..were “her” rights violated by having to sit in the back? Maybe if she was disabled and needed back or leg room etc. Otherwise the only thing that makes this different than a stewart or stadium host telling you to move seats is he ” cited ” his religion as the reason. He should have just said it’s my car ” policy”.
Amusing, but Renegade at 1, December 21, 2015 at 2:17 am has it right. No need for tongue in cheek. Sounds like another reach for 15 minutes to me. bam bam at December 21, 2015 at 1:32 am also has a good point…based upon where I live, some “cabs” can be toxic front or back seat. If I can I try to hire “Americar” for any distance (usually Cadillacs or Lincolns) , even just to the airport…about 20+% more but always clean and fresh…and they will meet you at your plane inbound exit ramp if you ask….they have ramp spaces at DTW. Don’t try this in Washington DC (Baltimore is OK) as the price is huge, even just to Arlington from National…learned that the hard way. Thought I’d bought a ticket to Bangladesh or Beijing. 🙁 Always ask price first. Try to be silly only once. Quite happy now that I’ve retired to not need the DTW to National, and back, circuit often. I’ll credit National for having very good (relatively) cab access right outside the front door…no long hikes….just skip the limo cars if not cash bulky.
I’ve never been to NY, so I’m not exactly in a position to judge. Having said that, I am under the definite impression that it is not an American city at all; it’s only located in America.
I agree with Beldar but would go one further. NYC is a place where very few Americans should travel. It is a pirate territory. Fly over and flush.
No woman in her right mind would get in the front seat with a turban headed muslim.
Hmmmm.
I presume you would apply the same rules for those cake bakers and same sex marriages.
Thanks for providing me with a good laugh all you Islamaphobic hypocrites.
Doglover: And all Native Americans should have to adopt the culture and language of the tribes they wiped out, and pay restitution to the descendants of the slaves they took? For instance, the Iriquois tribe wiped out the entire tribe of Erie natives. Plus they have to pay restitution for the Beaver Wars, when they conquered lands they wanted for hunting, conquering, enslaving, and even wiping out entirely tribes they encountered.
What is an even more distressing problem is the prohibition against dogs. Blind people with seeing eye dogs have a scandalously difficult time getting a ride, because of the Muslim prohibition against dogs.
I agree with DBQ that a general rule against passengers in the front seat is a good safety precaution. They’re giving rides to strangers, after all. But it cannot be applied in an arbitrary, discriminatory fashion. This is the same reason I adamantly opposed the Orthodox Jews causing a massive delay because they complained about the seating of female passengers.
Don’t we live in the US where we respect all Islamic values, maybe we just need more mosques.