"Just deleted my Uber app. If they won't stand with us, I won't ride with them," posted one actor after Lyft pledged to donate $1 million to the ACLU.
In response to President Donald Trump’s immigration ban, Lyft pledged on Sunday to donate $1 million to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) — spurring many in Hollywood to abandon rival Uber in support of the ride-sharing app.
In a letter from Lyft co-founders John Zimmer and Logan Green the company announced that Lyft stands firmly against Trump's executive order, which blocked U.S. entry for citizens of seven predominantly Muslim nations — Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen — for 90 days. It also suspended entry of all refugees for 120 days and barred Syrian refugees indefinitely.
"We created Lyft to be a model for the type of community we want our world to be: diverse, inclusive and safe," began Zimmer and Green in a letter that was emailed to Lyft members Sunday morning. The letter addressed Trump closing U.S. borders to refugees and immigrants, as well as those with valid visas from the seven countries. "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."
The pair said the company "will not be silent on issues that threaten the values of our community" and announced they will be donating $1 million over the next four years to the ACLU.
Many in Hollywood applauded Lyft's stance, taking to Twitter to help spread the growing hashtag #DeleteUber and announce that they had abandoned Uber in support of Lyft. Both #DeleteUber and #Lyft were trending on Twitter Sunday afternoon.
"Thank you @lyft! @Uber deleted! Proud of this support to the @ACLU," posted Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Rob Corddry, Michelle Monaghan and Taraji P. Henson posted similar sentiments, while Denis O'Hare tweeted, "Just deleted my Uber app. If they won't stand with us, I won't ride with them."
The hashtag first began to pickup steam Saturday night. Two Iraqis were detained at JFK Airport when the ban went into effect and the New York City Taxi Worker's Alliance called for a complete stop to pickups from the airport. In response, Uber announced that it was suspending its surge pricing from JFK but continued to operate, spurring social media outcry over what many deemed as an inappropriate response.
Many tech giants who rely on foreign engineers and experts for the majority of their workforce, including Google, Apple and Netflix, expressed dismay over the order in the last 24 hours.
Uber, for its part, announced a plan to compensate drivers who are impacted by the ban and stuck overseas. In a Facebook post titled "Standing up for what's right," CEO Travis Kalanick said their team had reached out to the dozen or so employees they knew are affected and is "working out a process to identify these drivers and compensate them pro bono during the next three months to help mitigate some of the financial stress and complications with supporting their families and putting food on the table."
For many in Hollywood, Uber's pledge did not compare to Lyft's actions. See the reactions on social media below.
Thank you @lyft! @Uber deleted! Proud of this support to the @ACLU. https://t.co/Geowi73NTU
— Jesse Tyler Ferguson (@jessetyler) January 29, 2017
@lyft to donate 1 million $ to ACLU while @uber profits off the backs of detainees. Altruism is a better business model #DeleteUber
— rob corddry (@robcorddry) January 29, 2017
Wow. Just wow. This is what America is about folks. Thank you @lyft @ACLU https://t.co/Xduij9D2E5
— Michelle Monaghan (@realmonaghan) January 29, 2017
@Uber @Uber_NYC @Uber_Support - Just deleted my Uber app. If they won't stand with us, I won't ride with them. Use @lyft @Way2rideapp
— Denis O'Hare (@denisohare) January 29, 2017
The boycott is on delete #uber get #lyft or #juno just as good and they dont track u when its off either!!
— John Leguizamo (@JohnLeguizamo) January 29, 2017
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