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Race And The City: A Report From The Rockaways
At 7:38 a.m., my son and I bust it down our long block to the city bus stop.
We can’t risk missing the early bus, because the driver is a nice white guy who charges all school kids the same price (nothing), regardless of the color of their skin. The next driver is a black guy, who charges white and Asian kids (mine is both) half-fare, while letting black and Hispanic kids ride for free.
The first time we boarded and the black guy calls me back to make me pay for my son (I’d already paid full fare for me), I let him get away with it. Then I observed his peculiar practice.
The next time, I pay only for me. When the driver demands I pay for my son I respond: “When you charge black and Hispanic kids, I’ll pay.” He loudly retorts: “You know you’re breaking the law, sir!” I shout back: “No more than you’re breaking the law!”
Since I know he would be delighted to have a white father handcuffed in front of his son, I never get on his bus again. Sometimes, my son and I walk the 1.3 miles in the rain.
Later, the driver is replaced by a black lady, with the same peculiar practice. I get tired of fighting City Hall, and so, when we miss the early bus, I pay the racist surcharge. . . .
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