On February 14, cabbie Khalil Talke was stabbed by an unknown man while in his taxicab, and is still in hospital recovering from the wounds today, his left arm still in a cast after trying to fend off the attacker. The worst part of the attack, however, came after the incident. Because of city rules, Talke has been prohibited from renting out his cab as a source of income while in hospital. He was forced by law to return his Ambassador Taxicab licence to the city. By city law, they return the licence when the driver is healthy enough to resume his job.
Talke, a father of four says he feels he's been cheated by the city - and that racism is at the heart of the issue. There are two kinds of taxi licences in Toronto - Ambassador and Standard. Standard licences allow the driver to rent out the cab in case of injury or sickness, while the Ambassador licences do not. Talke believes that minorities, who make up the majority of cab drivers, are refused Standard licences based on race alone. Talke is not the first person to be victimized by this, as other members of minorities have been fighting on this issue for years.
This is just one of many examples that racism is not yet dead in Canada, despite our best efforts. Laws need to be changed based on our changing times. Robbing a stab vicim of income while in hospital is adding insult to injury, and that's not something the municipal government wants to have pinned on them.
http://www.thestar.com/news/crime/article/948851--stabbed-cabbie-loses-his-income-because-of-city-rules?bn=1
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