And that was the easy part.
The passengers who shunned Moalin and Hussein also told them that they hate Muslims and that they never will ride with them again.
Moalin and Hussien have a lot in common. They are both Somali immigrants. They have been driving taxis for three years, mostly working night shifts in Minneapolis. At the time of the incident, both drove for Suburban Taxi, also known as Green and White Taxi.
On any given night, they would cross each other at one of the many popular taxi stops in the city. But they were not prepared for what happened on a recent Saturday night in front of Brit’s Pub, a popular bar in downtown Minneapolis where both often stopped for passengers. Moalin, 36, had just dropped a passenger there when two men approached him. One of them opened the passenger door and asked Moalin if he is a Muslim.
Unprepared for such a question, Moalin said he replied, “Yes.” Then the man told Moalin to “‘just wait a second -- let’s see what my friend thinks about that.’”
After a brief conversation with his companion, the man returned with a quick verdict, saying, “‘Sorry, we’re not going to take you,'” Moalin said. Moalin got out of his cab to see what the two men were up to.
The next cab in line was driven by 29-year-old Hussein. The two potential passengers went through the same scenario with him. Third in line was another unidentified Somali cabdriver. It didn’t take the men too long to shun him, too.
They finally jumped into the fourth taxicab, which was driven by an Ethiopian man, whom Hussein and Moalin said is a Christian. But just before they got in this cab, the two men turned to tell Moalin, who was striding behind them, that they “‘hate Muslims,’” and that they “‘will be sure to deprive them’” of business, Moalin said.
Moalin and Hussein said the whole episode caught them by surprise. “I have never seen or imagined something quite like this,” Moalin said in an interview. “It was shocking.”
It’s the latest twist in a case that began several years ago with some Muslim cab drivers at the airport, who have recently attracted national media attention for refusing booze-hauling passengers. Moalin and Hussein said they are clearly being tied to these cabbies.
But what is particularly shocking to them is that they routinely transport people to and from bars and liquor stores.
“Almost every customer asks me about the alcohol issue,” said Hussien, who now drives a Rainbow Taxi. “I tell them that I don’t care about what my customers carry with them.”
Both Hussien and Moalin said the incident is an isolated case, though it made them more careful. A number of other taxi drivers interviewed for this story reported increased discussions with their passengers about the alcohol issue, but no one reported a problem.
Abdi Mohamed, known as "Mr. nice guy," vice president of Minneapolis Taxi Drivers Association, said his organization will try to investigate the incident. “It’s the negative effect of what airport cabbies have done to passengers,” he said
Abdirahman Aynte can be reached at [email protected]