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Taxi Drivers Protest With No Coronavirus Relief in Sight

Taxi drivers shut down traffic around city hall to protest a lack of coronavirus aid, and continued on to medallion creditors who still demand payment

Max Siegelbaum

Aug 21, 2020

Bronx, New York - May 6, 2018: Views of Jerome Street in the Bronx. Photo: Christopher Lee for Documented.

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Taxi drivers parked their cabs and shut down the area around New York City Hall on Wednesday morning to demand help from the mayor. COVID-19 has dried up most of their fares, and creditors are still seeking money for their taxi medallions that have plummeted in value. The New York Taxi Workers Alliance organized the rally, which proceeded from city hall to buildings of taxi loan creditors in Long Island and New Jersey. The organization estimates ridership has dropped between 80 percent and 90 percent during the pandemic. “The brokers, the mayor the banks, they all said they would take care of yellow medallion taxis, but instead, the TLC [Taxi and Limousine Commission) didn’t tell drivers the medallion was going to drop from hundreds of thousands of dollars to only $83,000 — leaving many of us with huge debt and it’s killing us,” one driver said outside City Hall. amNY

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Immigrants Pivot Jobs After Losing Work Due to COVID

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Max Siegelbaum

Co-executive Director of Documented

@MaxSiegelbaum

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