Sign up for our newsletter.

Quality journalism. Progressive values. Direct to your inbox.

Follow us:

Taxi drivers in New York City demand debt relief.

New York Taxi Workers Stage Hunger Strike to Demand Medallion Debt Relief

"They are an essential industry here in New York City," said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, "and we need to make sure we're doing right by them."

Julia Conley

Local and federal progressive lawmakers expressed solidarity on Sunday with New York City taxi drivers who were five days into a hunger strike, demanding Mayor Bill DeBlasio embrace a debt relief proposal for drivers who owe hundreds of thousands of dollars for the medallions they purchased in order to work in the industry.
 
After spending a month protesting outside City Hall, members of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance (NYTWA) began the hunger strike last Wednesday in the hopes of forcing the mayor to respond.
 
The NYTWA has proposed a debt relief program that would cap outstanding medallion debt at $145,000 and payments at $800 per month—a plan they say is far superior to the city's $65 million debt restructuring program.
 
The city's taxi drivers "shouldn’t have to be on a hunger strike," said Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), who represents parts of The Bronx. "Cancel the debt."
 
 
The medallion debt crisis has contributed to widespread despair, financial ruin, and health problems among drivers, according to the NYTWA.
 
"This is a workforce that has been so, super exploited," Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the NYTWA, said in a video produced by More Perfect Union. "There has been such a sense of despair among the drivers. And so to see drivers get past the suicides and the bankruptcies and all the heart attacks and the strokes and the utter level of despair and depression, to now being on the streets, refusing to leave until justice is won... It's workers taking back control over their lives."
 
 
Drivers in New York City save up tens of thousands of dollars for down payments on medallions, allowing them to own their cabs. The medallion market has served as a major revenue stream for the city, bringing in $850 million during the administrations of DeBlasio and former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, as drivers have been encouraged to take out huge loans to buy their medallions.

"To see drivers get past the suicides and the bankruptcies and all the heart attacks and the strokes and the utter level of despair and depression, to now being on the streets, refusing to leave until justice is won... It's workers taking back control over their lives."

 
The city's debt restructuring program is "nothing more than a banker bailout," the NYTWA told Al Jazeera on Friday.
 
The plan is "going to give $65 million directly to the banks and hedge funds that own medallion debt in exchange for a negligible reduction in the principal owed on them," the union said.
 
According to the NYTWA, the average owner-driver owes $550,000 on medallions that are worth only about $100,000.
 
Ride-sharing apps like Uber and Lyft as well as the coronavirus pandemic have driven down demand in recent years, leaving drivers earning little more than minimum wage and struggling to pay their medallion debts.
 
One driver named Richard told Al Jazeera that 15 years after making a down payment on a $410,000 medallion, he now owes $400,000 in outstanding debt, with monthly payments of $2,766.
 
New York state Assemblymembers Zohran Kwame Mamdani and Yuh-Line Niou were among the allies who joined the taxi drivers in their hunger strike.
 
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) are also among the lawmakers that have called on the city to accept the NYTWA's debt relief proposal.
 
 
"We're here standing strong with our taxi workers because we need to make a wrong, right, and we have to make sure that we reestablish hope and life for our taxi workers," said Ocasio-Cortez Friday. "They are an essential industry here in New York City...and we need to make sure we're doing right by them."
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Comments

... We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Related

A New York Cirt taxi driver takes part in a hunger strike demanding debt relief

'Historic Moment' as NYC Taxi Drivers Win Major Debt Relief Following Hunger Strike

Julia Conley ·

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks to the media

Cuomo Resigns Over Sexual Harassment Allegations

Jake Johnson ·

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks at a rally

Breaking News: AOC's District Has Opinions

Ari Paul ·

Fight jets Canada

100 Public Figures Oppose Trudeau's $77 Billion Fighter Jet Purchase

Canadian Foreign Policy Institute ·

Latest News

See all
Nikema Williams

Dems Mark Anniversary of 13th Amendment With Calls to 'Close the Slavery Loophole'

"Prison labor is slave labor. Pass the #AbolitionAmendment."

Jessica Corbett ·

Joaquin Castro

Dems Urge DOJ Antitrust Probe Into $43 Billion Discovery-WarnerMedia Merger

"Giant corporations must not be allowed to stomp out competition, put up barriers to enter the market, and continue to exclude Latinos from the media industry."

Jessica Corbett ·

A woman holds a sign reading, "Black voters matter"

DOJ Lawsuit Challenging Texas Gerrymandering Met With Applause, Calls for Action in Congress

"While we are grateful for the involvement of the federal government, what we need to stop the five-decade cycle of having to take legal action every 10 years is for Congress to pass the Freedom to Vote Act," said one advocate.

Julia Conley ·

Former President Donald Trump walks at the White House

'Nobody Is Above the Law': Elizabeth Warren Applauds SEC Probe of Trump's Social Media Venture

"There may have been serious violations of securities laws during the proposed merger of Digital World Acquisition Corp. and Trump's media company," said the Massachusetts Democrat.

Kenny Stancil ·

South Africa Shell

'We Won't Stop Fighting,' Vow South African Activists After Judge OKs Shell Seismic Blasting at Sea

"We must do everything we can to undo the destructive colonial legacy of extractivism, until we live in a world where people and the planet come before the profits of toxic fossil fuel companies."

Brett Wilkins ·

Most Popular

 
  1. With Maxwell Sacrificed, the Ruling Oligarchs Will Once Again Escape Justice
  2. 'Utterly Obscene': Just 8 Pfizer and Moderna Investors Became $10 Billion Richer After Omicron Emerged
  3. Sanders Calls on Biden to Slash 'Outrageous' Medicare Premium Hike
  4. With the Failure of Politics, People Are Waking Up to the Realization That They Have a World to Win
  5. 'Indefensible': Outrage Over Man in Wheelchair Fatally Shot in the Back by Arizona Cop
  6. 'The Facts of This Case Are So Egregious': Parents of Michigan School Shooter Charged in Killings
  7. 'Congress Must Act': Bernie Sanders Demands End of Filibuster to Codify Abortion Rights
  8. Teach Your Children Well
  9. Ilhan Omar Calls Kevin McCarthy 'A Liar and a Coward' for Refusing to Condemn Boebert's Islamophobia
  10. Michigan School Shooting Exposes 2nd Amendment as Poison to America

Support our work.

We are independent, non-profit, advertising-free and 100% reader supported.

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Subscribe to our newsletter.

Quality journalism. Progressive values.
Direct to your inbox.

Subscribe to our Newsletter.

Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit | Privacy Policy
Common Dreams Logo

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.