Stars Support Lyft After Rideshare App Pledges to Donate $1 Million to ACLU

“We created Lyft to be a model for the type of community we want our world to be: diverse, inclusive and safe,” Lyft said in a letter to its clients

Stars boycott Uber Support Lyft
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Beatrice Verhoeven, PWS

After Donald Trump signed an executive order to ban citizens from seven mostly Muslim countries from entering the U.S. for 90 days, Lyft pledged to donate $1 million to the ACLU over the next four years — and stars are taking note.

Lyft co-founders John Zimmer and Logan Green sent a letter to their members Sunday morning, announcing that the rideshare app stands firmly against Trump’s executive order which also suspended entry for all refugees for 120 days.

“We created Lyft to be a model for the type of community we want our world to be: diverse, inclusive and safe,” the note said. “Banning people of a particular faith or creed, race or identity, sexuality or ethnicity, from entering the U.S. is antithetical to both Lyft’s and our nations’ core values.”

Stars like Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Monaghan and Denis O’Hare took to Twitter to support Lyft’s stance using the hashtags #DeleteUber and #Lyft, while some announced they deleted the Uber app to support the other app.

“Thank you @lyft! @Uber deleted! Proud of this support to the @ACLU,” posted “Modern Family” star Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

The hashtag #BoycottUber popped up on Twitter Friday after the company’s CEO, Travis Kalanick, defended the company’s decision to work with the Trump administration, saying that the relationship was necessary to fulfill Uber’s mission to improve global transportation.

This new hashtag is asking people who oppose Trump to use Uber’s main competitor, Lyft, whenever they need a ride. More general critics of Uber are also using the hashtag to voice their complaints about the company’s labor practices and low pay of their drivers. The hashtag picked up steam when two Iraqis were detained at JFK Airport and the New York City Taxi Worker’s Alliance stopped all pickups from JFK to show their support against Trump’s order.

According to Vox, Uber, however, announced they would continue to pick up customers but suspend surge pricing which would increase wait times, and many were outraged and took that as Uber trying to benefit from Trump’s Muslim ban.

https://twitter.com/Uber_NYC/status/825502908926066688?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

In response, Kalanick on Sunday promised to provide 24/7 legal support to drivers who are trying to get back into the country, compensate drivers for lost earnings and create a $3 million legal defense fund to help drivers with translation and immigration services.

Read Kalanick’s Facebook post here, and see reactions from stars below.

https://twitter.com/carnojoe/status/825749850301952000?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

https://www.instagram.com/p/BP3DwzXAUI1/

Beatrice Verhoeven, PWS

Beatrice Verhoeven

Film Editor, Twitter: @bverhoev

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