UstaadKhan Blogs

In this story, we find another example of how the media twists facts and sensationalizes stories. Unfortunately, the twisting is usually in the negative direction for Muslims. So, these poor Muslim cab-drivers were accused all over the media and the net for refusing to pick up blind folks and their guide-dogs, even by many Muslims (the recent CAIR-suing-passenger case comes to mind). You see that story made for interesting news. It caused outrage, because it pitted Muslims on one side and handicapped, blind people on the other. Who do you think won? No prizes for guessing it right.

BUT, the problem is that this was never the case. These cabbies are screaming that they never refused such a ride, that someone in their imagination build a case based on this logic:

Muslims considers dogs impure.
These cabbies are Muslims.
So, Muslim cabbies would refuse dogs into their cabs.

The logical fallacies in this are obvious, for instance, this fails to take into account: what do Muslims consider impure in dogs? Are there exceptions? Is there any evidence of such a refusal? Well, no one cared to ask the cabbies, because they insist that there was no refusal, rendering the first two questions redundant!

So, these Muslim cab-drivers are making their own statement. FREE RIDES to all blind people AND their dogs. What a great idea! Bust the myth AND double it up with some good Samaritan stuff. And yet, the official story on this had to throw in some disclaimers and how the National Foundation of Blind’s MN chapter gave it a cool reception. Who cares what reception they gave? The point is that the media messed up in previous accounts and demonized these cab-drivers. And they can’t fess up and quite swallow their pride yet. So, mad PROPS to the Minneapolis Muslim cab-drivers for doing the right thing and a little more!

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Muslim cabbies offer free rides for the blind and their dogs

Muslim cabdrivers at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, under fire for allegedly refusing service to some people on religious grounds, are offering blind people and their guide dogs free rides during an upcoming convention.

About 300 cabbies are volunteering to provide the free rides, hoping to counter the perception that the cabbies are refusing to pick up passengers with service dogs, the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations announced Thursday.

However, Joyce Scanlan, the president of the National Federation of the Blind’s Minnesota Chapter, which is organizing a convention April 21, gave the idea a cool reception, saying she would prefer the cabdrivers simply do their jobs.

“We really are uncomfortable with that, with the offer of getting free rides. We don’t think that solves anything,” Scanlan said. “We believe the cabdrivers need to realize that the law says they will not turn down a blind person.”

Valerie Shirley, a spokeswoman for CAIR’s Minnesota chapter, said Muslim cabbies at the airport claim such refusals never took place.

“They say this has never been an issue. They don’t know where this came from,” Shirley said. “They would really like a driver name, or a driver’s number, of who did this (refused a blind passenger). In Islamic law, it’s not permissible to turn away someone who is blind or has another disability, whether or not they have an animal.”

Scanlan said her organization’s clients have complained several times about cabbies not picking them up if they have guide dogs.

“It is an issue. I’ve heard about the Islamic cabdrivers at the airport,” she said, adding that blind passengers face problems from non-Muslim cabbies in other areas of the city, as well.

Many Muslims believe dogs to be impure, based on interpretations of the Quran.

Airport spokesman Pat Hogan said that in the past several years there have been three formal complaints to the airport about people and their guide dogs being refused rides.

Officials at the Metropolitan Airports Commission are considering stiffer penalties for cabbies who refuse fares. A hearing to discuss the penalties followed reports that airport cabbies – roughly three-quarters of whom are Muslim – refused for religious reasons to transport passengers carrying alcohol.