A far-right media personality has been barred from using two major ride-sharing applications after posting a series of anti-Muslim comments on Twitter. Laura Loomer, whose bio describes her as a “citizen journalist” who previously worked for Canada’s Rebel Media and undercover watchdog group Project Veritas, tweeted a photo of two women wearing hijabs on Manhattan’s Greenwich Street, near where 29-year-old Sayfullo Habibullaevic Saipov drove a pick-up truck down a bike path Tuesday, killing at least eight people and injuring 12 others. Loomer wrote on Twitter that the women were “aimlessly walking around in hijabs,” and “rubbing it in everyone’s faces.” You’d think they’d have the decency to not walk around in hijabs @ cross street of the attack. But they don’t. I bet they’re loving this. Loomer also accused ride-sharing services Uber and Lyft of hiring terrorists and complained about not being able to find non-Muslim drivers. I’m late to the NYPD press conference because I couldn’t find a non Muslim cab or @Uber @lyft driver for over 30 min! This is insanity. Nearly every cab @uber @lyft driver in NYC is Muslim. It’s extremely unfortunate and this is a conversation we need to have for our safety. Was this terrorist also an @Uber driver? Why is uber hiring Islamic terrorists? #BoycottUber https://t.co/ccQtaBZMom Uber confirmed to HuffPost on Tuesday that Saipov had passed a background check to become a driver for the app in New Jersey. He was an active driver at the time of the attack, having recorded over 1,400 trips in six months, but has since been banned from the app, Uber said. Saipov was charged in federal court on Wednesday with acting on behalf of the militant group Islamic State. Loomer appeared to use this information as grounds for raising “safety concerns” about all Muslim taxi drivers. In the wake of Loomer’s comments, Uber and Lyft confirmed that the commentator had been banned from using their apps on Wednesday. “This passenger’s account has been deactivated, meaning they can no longer access the Lyft platform,” a company spokesperson told HuffPost on Thursday. An Uber spokesperson confirmed to HuffPost that Loomer had violated community guidelines and her account was permanently deactivated. Loomer responded on Facebook and Twitter to the news of her ban, declaring that she would take legal action against the ride-sharing companies.
