The Desi Founded & Led Union: The Vibrant New York Taxi Workers Alliance
The Desi Founded & Led Union: The Vibrant New York Taxi Workers Alliance
Words by Shivani Parikh
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The Desi Founded & Led Union: The Vibrant New York Taxi Workers Alliance by Shivani Parikh
As South Asian Americans, we rarely see ourselves represented in unapologetic political action. Moving to New York City for law school, I knew that it was one of the few places in the country where this would be possible. The first time I had ever heard of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance was in September 2017, when I visited their office with other students that I was about to study abroad with as we first grounded ourselves in understanding urban sociopolitical issues in New York City. Javaid Tariq explained how their union was founded and how racism and classism affected their rapidly changing industry that was often dangerous for drivers who had little protections from being physically attacked, stolen from, and the escalation of patrons abusing their drivers after 9/11. I was amazed to hear him then say that the organization was co-founded with two other South Asians Bhairavi Desai and Biju Mathew. After President Trump was elected, I had been looking to hear about or find stories, people, and organizations that disproved the model minority myth and here was a longstanding advocate for the rights of working-class folks, which included South Asians and a deliberate politic that recognized how xenophobia and Islamophobia were paradigms that affected their work.