Taxi driver called a “filthy Muslim” by Islamophobic thug in Birmingham

The Birmingham Mail reports on the footage of a taxi driver facing “sickening racial abuse” after picking up two passengers in Sheldon.

The incident began when the driver stopped to pick up a woman, thought to be in her 50s, outside Titash Indian Restaurant at around 11:30pm on Wednesday 15^th November. She was helped inside the vehicle by her male friend, before asking how much it would cost to travel from Coventry Road to Shard End.

The woman allegedly became aggressive after being told the journey would cost between £12 and £15. The driver then ordered her out of the cab, leading her friend to explode into an Islamophobic rant at the driver.

Footage taken by the driver shows the thug calling him a “f****** filthy Muslim”. The driver said that before he started filming, the perpetrator “was swearing and screaming at me about ISIS”.

The 30-year-old victim, who has worked as a black cab driver for just over a year, told the paper he had been “totally put off” working as a taxi driver following the attack. He said, “It isn’t about money, this was insulting and a personal attack on me based on my religion and the colour of my skin.”

The driver, who has decided to remain anonymous, said, “The whole incident was quite upsetting. Often you can get really drunk passengers and I can deal with that – but what I experienced was pure hatred.”

West Midlands Police reported over 4,000 racially and/or religiously aggravated hate crimes in 2016/17. The incident has been reported to West Midlands Police with a spokeswoman for the force asking for anyone with information to call 101, quoting reference 20BE/246931M/17.