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[-] Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world 135 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

I shared this before.

If you were a person of color, having Uber and Airbnb were a game changer. Taxis and hotels were awful from the 80s-2010s.

Taxis were racists and often wouldn't even pick you up. If they did, they often took you on a joyride. Hotels were absolute shit holes. Want to complain about your room? Go pound sand.

Those industries werent good for decades. And the disruption actually made car sharing much more consistent and hotel experiences better.

[-] whoisearth@lemmy.ca 47 points 6 months ago

Interesting perspective I never accounted before thank you. Cabs were notorious for not picking up black people. Can't speak for hotels.

[-] Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world 19 points 6 months ago

Hotels prior to the Internet would do shitty things like:

  1. Rates increased. Pay triple.
  2. You want this moldy room or not.
  3. Lie and say this is the only thing available in town

Hotels took a long time to actually get online checking. Most hotels were still requiring phone reservations way past 2010. And even if you get a reservation over the phone, they could always take one look at you upon arrival and reject it.

Airbnb forced them to move to the digital age. They forced them to show the pricing up front. They forced them to have photos of the room types. They made them take reservations and actually hold it, else face bad reviews.

[-] whoisearth@lemmy.ca 7 points 6 months ago

You could book hotels online prior to airbnb. I have done that numerous times since 2000...

The big chains for sure. But many did not - especially if you weren't in a metropolitan area.

[-] Microw@lemm.ee 9 points 6 months ago

At least here in a european countries, taxis and hotels were overregulated and monopolized af. The business models of Uber and Airbnb may not have been the best at the start, but like you say: it was a needed disruption.

[-] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 7 points 6 months ago

My understanding is that Uber basically lifted the idea from queer people. They were tired of not getting taxis so they started a service called homobiles ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homobiles )

Uber then did all the shitty capitalism things and become the huge money hole and exploitation machine we all know.

Airbnb also made the process easy it lead to rents raising by like 30% in some places .

So they have have some convenience and such, but on the whole they're probably a net negative.

[-] RomenNarmo@lemmy.zip 4 points 6 months ago

My understanding is that Uber basically lifted the idea from queer people.

That doesn't make sense as it seems Homobiles was first "thought of" in 2010 and properly founded in 2011. While Uber was founded in 2009 and was already operational in 2010.

[-] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 1 points 6 months ago

I got it from "the cold start problem" , so it's possible the author was mistaken or I mangled the details.

[-] jaybone@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

Taxis sucked for white people too.

[-] dariusj18@lemmy.world 34 points 6 months ago

I'm not sure you understand the parent comment. I didn't realize how terrible until I hailed a cab, noticed someone who was actually also hailing but must have been doing so before me, so I deferred and offered the cab I hailed to him. The cabby noticed the person was black and just booked it. The person was resigned and indicated this was not uncommon.

[-] Mango@lemmy.world -3 points 6 months ago

I was sitting outside the courthouse with this cool old black guy smoking weed and buying it from him. This guy is a real badass and challenges my perceptions. When he waves me over to sit between him and this other black guy, the other black guy acted like I must have the plague or something and he wouldn't talk with me or even look at me. He took the first moment he could to go sit back by Bob. The guy had fear in his eyes, plain enough for someone autistic to see. He was afraid of me, and almost certainly for my race. Feels bad man. Not because I super wanted to interact with him or anything, but because he's clearly been through some awful shit.

Now imagine the old cabbies who wouldn't pick up a black guy. Why is that? They don't tip well for not having much money? Maybe there was even worse experiences. I'm just trying to say that there shouldn't be any pressure for individuals to rub up against something that repels them like that.

The problem here is clearly that some industries have been dominated by particular races who tend to alienate each other and live in echo chambers. An industry should not be occupied by a race because that causes these kinda of rifts and lack of availability. I don't think it's fair to just be like "well that cabbie discriminated and let's prosecute that." We need to change the gears and lube them up!

[-] criss_cross@lemmy.world 16 points 6 months ago

The amount of times their credit card machine would just "break" so that you'd be forced to pay in cash and tip much more back then was staggering.

[-] uis@lemm.ee 4 points 6 months ago

Reeeeee! USSA, please fix bullshit tips. My country is just 4 km away from you and it's really concerning.

[-] Serinus@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

OR we can keep one fairly easily attainable, ubiquitous job that pays decently.

I'd rather make sure everyone gets healthcare than take away their tips.

[-] Serinus@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago

If you get them healthcare and $30/hr (by the time we accomplish it), then yeah, take their tips.

[-] uis@lemm.ee 2 points 6 months ago

Not sure about taking away tips, but they SHOULD be excluded from counting wage. Ability to legally pay worker zero because tips count towards paid wage should not exist.

[-] Serinus@lemmy.world 1 points 6 months ago
[-] WolfLink@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 months ago

I don’t think I’ve ever ridden a taxi without them trying to pull one over me in some way.

[-] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 1 points 6 months ago

"I will never forget the look on that cab driver's face as he drove away."

-former business contact extolling Uber (this was in its early days), describing a taxi driver scamming her in a foreign country with unfamiliar currency

And now I’ve never forgotten her words…

this post was submitted on 02 Jun 2024
1563 points (96.5% liked)

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