December 5, 2008
A day with a striking driver
Shahid Comrade, 50, came to the United States 33 years ago and has been a cabbie for most of that time. He joined the strikers Monday, proudly holding aloft a sign that said "Taxi Drivers vs. Billionaire Bloomberg."
The general secretary of a group called the Pakistan--USA Freedom Forum," he did without the $125 a day he makes (not including gas and leasing fees) to rally for what he sees as primarily an immigrants' rights issue.
5:00 am: Comrade leaves his home in Queens to make his way to Penn Station to what he hopes would be a major rally of striking union workers. He is disappointed to find just a few guys there. Exceptionally polite, Comrade passes out homemade fliers about Pakistan and immigrant rights and quietly says, "thank you," to all who take one.
10:00: With the morning rush over, Comrade slowly makes his way down Seventh Avenue towards TLC headquarters for a noontime rally. "We are fighting for all working people and everyone who respects privacy laws," he says.
10:30: On 23rd Street, Comrade runs into someone he recognizes from the union hall, Sayed El Ed, a fellow cab driver. El Ed came over from Jersey City for the rally. Trained as a lawyer in his native Egypt, he became a cabbie "because it seemed like the best job in the world. Every day you get to drive around the city and meet new people."
The two go into the Staples on Sixth Avenue so Comrade can make more copies of his flier.
11:15: The two stop at coffee shop downtown. Though they have just met, each insists on paying for the other. The talk soon turns to politics in their home countries, and whether Pakistan or Egypt is less democratic. "You see, in the Third World, this is how we talk, we compare who has the worst dictator."
Noon: The rally begins. Comrade begins a "Hey hey, ho ho, tracker system has got to go!" chant. Comrade wanders around the rally, greeting fellow cabbies and passing out fliers.
"I see so much support," El Ed said. "I feel like I didn't waste my day for nothing."
4 pm: As the rally breaks up, the two head in separate directions to take advantage of a rare off day and visit friends and family -- and do laundry.
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