CAIR-NY Seeks Human Rights Probe of Laura Loomer’s Reported ‘Boycott’ of Muslim Uber Drivers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(NEW YORK, NY, 6/28/2018) – The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY), a leading Muslim civil rights group, today issued a referral letter to the NYC Commission on Human Rights asking the commission to investigate whether Laura Loomer, a conservative commentator and creator of “ambush” videos, violated New York City Human Rights Laws prohibiting discriminatory boycotts, blacklists and related practices.
On November 1st, 2017, at 8:40 a.m., Loomer tweeted, “I’m late to the NYPD press conference because I couldn’t find a non Muslim[sic] cab or @Uber @Lyft driver for over 30 min! This is insanity.”
Later that day she posted, “Someone needs to create a non Islamic [sic] form of @uber or @lyft because I never want to support another Islamic immigrant driver” and “I generally try to not support Muslim owned business companies [sic] here in NY.”
These statements, if true, suggest that Loomer refused or cancelled rides when she perceived the driver was Muslim. Loomer has expressed similar sentiments in recent months. Last month, she tweeted that Uber drivers “commit terror attacks and rape on the daily.” In early June, she tweeted asking how many people are “going to be killed in Jihad” by Uber drivers.
Link to referral letter
https://www.cair-ny.org/s/2018-06-28-NYCHRC-Referral-Letter-Re-Loomer-FINAL-y5r6.pdf
Link to Laura Loomer Social Media Posts
https://www.cair-ny.org/s/2018-06-28-Social-Media-Posts-By-Laura-Loomer.pdf
NYC’s Human Rights Law makes it illegal for a person to “refuse to buy from, sell to or trade with, any person, because of such person's actual or perceived. . .creed.” The law also provides for civil penalties of up to $250,000 for discriminatory conduct that is intentional or wanton. The commission has the authority to initiate investigations into claims of discrimination based on reports from the public, such as the referral letter sent by CAIR-NY today.
“The Supreme Court may be willing to ignore anti-Muslim bias, but our city must remain committed to fighting bigotry,” said CAIR-NY Legal Director Albert Cahn. “There simply should be no place in New York for anti-Muslim workplace discrimination. Sadly, the Commission’s own data shows that 72 percent of harassment, discrimination and hate crimes go unreported. That is why it’s essential for organizations like CAIR-NY to combat all forms of harassment and discrimination. New Yorkers have the right to say and believe whatever they want, no matter how biased. But our law is clear, you cannot boycott or discriminate against businesses because of their religion.”
Since 2016, CAIR-NY has recorded a 974 percent increase in incidents of harassment, discrimination, and violence against Muslims. The commission released a report this month finding that while 42 percent of Muslim New Yorkers had experienced some form of harassment, 72 percent of them did not report it.
Muslim community members in New York are asked to report any bias incidents to the police as well as to CAIR-NY at (646) 665-7599 and/or by filing a report at: https://www.cair-ny.org/incident-report/.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, mejorar la comprensión del Islam, promover la justicia, y empoderar a los musulmanes en los Estados Unidos.
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