Gay man says incident with homophobic Uber driver left him ‘fearing for his safety’
A gay man from London has shared his experience of riding in an Uber vehicle with a homophobic driver, saying the incident left him fearing for his safety.
Lewis Peters, who describes himself “avid rider” of Uber cars, shared his story with Gay Star News, saying that being witness to a driver’s homophobic rant left him “shocked”.
“I had taken an Uber from a work event to Clapham in South London to have a few drinks with my close friends, when in conversation, I asked the driver what his craziest Uber ride was,” Peters writes.
The 26-year-old journalist explains how he normally asks this question when he rides with Uber but this time “the response completely threw me.”
He says the Uber driver replied that it was “two guys in the back of my car, kissing, adding that is was “disgusting and vile” and “not normal.'”
“Immediately I felt unsafe,” Peters says. “It’s not that I expected him to physically attack me. But I was alone in a car with a homophobe. I started calculating if he realised I was gay and reckoned not.”
He adds: “I just sat in silence as he continued to spurt his verbal abuse.”
Peters says he told the driver that he had gay friends and “respected their way of life”, but revealed that the man’s hatred “had pushed” him back into the closet for the journey, making him feel “uncomfortable” and “angry”.
He adds that when he arrived at his destination he got out of the car, he slammed the door and turned to the driver before saying, “You just had a ride with a gay guy.”
The story comes after numerous incidents in which LGBT people have reportedly been thrown out of Uber vehicles for being gay or sharing affection with a partner.
Peters says he reported the events to Uber, who apologised for his experience and made it clear that the company had a strict policy regarding discrimination.
You can read the full article over at Gay Star News.
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