NEW YORK – November 23, 2015 — (UPI) — Today Show weatherman Al Roker has taken to social media to slam a NYC cabbie for passing him up for being black.
“Filed a complaint today after getting passed up again by a NYC Yellow cab. Cabbie picked up a white guy a block away. Wonder why Uber wins?” Roker wrote on Twitter Saturday.
“This happens to folks of color every day. And while most cabbies do their job, there are those ignorant, racist ones who hurt the others,” he continued.
Taxi and Limousine Commission Chair Meera Joshi spoke to the New York Daily News to confirm Roker’s complaint and mentioned that “Service refusal goes to the core of the taxi industry’s social contract with the riding public and it will not be tolerated,” before promising to “investigate this thoroughly and take every appropriate action.”
Roker also described how the situation was made worse since he was accompanied by his teenage son Nick. “What really hurts, my 13 yr. old by was with me and asked why the cabbie passed us. I said, “Nick, ignorant people make dumb choices.”
“Hopefully @nyctaxi weeds out the bad apples. Look forward to hearing and dealing with this. I will keep you posted,” the famed television personality wrote to his over 400,000 followers.
Roker is coming off his “Rokerthon 2” which saw the 61-year-old deliver the forecast on the Today Show across all 50 states and the District of Columbia in seven days which also earned him a new Guinness World Record.
