NYC NOW - November 13, 2023: Evening Roundup

Episode Date: November 13, 2023

13 firefighters are recovering after they were injured battling a 3-alarm fire in Manhattan's Little Italy last night. Also, a new cookbook dedicated to New York City’s diverse Asian food scene hits the market. Plus, Uber and Lyft have agreed to a $328 million-dollar settlement with New York's State Attorney General to settle allegations of wage theft. WNYC’s Janae Pierre catches up with a former driver, Malang Gassama, to discuss the impact of the settlement. Finally, a new exhibit at the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in lower Manhattan seeks to introduce children to the history of the Holocaust. WNYC’s Jessica Gould reports.

Welcome to NYC Now, your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. I'm Sean Carlson. More than a dozen firefighters are recovering after they were injured battling a three-alarm fire on Hester Street in Manhattan's Little Italy last night. Two people sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Two civilians also sustained minor injuries. The fire was under control just after 8 p.m., fire marshals are investigating the car. There's a new love letter to New York City out. it's devoted to our sprawling and diverse Asian food scene.

Made here includes recipes and stories from 43 restaurants and 24 neighborhoods across the city. It's self-published by the volunteer group SenChina Town Love, which was started by young Asian professionals during the height of the pandemic. Editor Christoph Sangrosa explains their goal. We are trying to celebrate New York City's culinary Buku melting pot, you know, that immigrant pathways can create in terms of, cuisine. Some of the selections include the legendary turn-up cakes from Golden Unicorn and the Scallion pancake PEC. That's plantain, egg, and cheese tacos from the Forsyth Fire Escape on the

Lower East Side. Stick around. There's more after the break. Uber and Lyft have agreed to a $328 million settlement with New York State Attorney General to settle allegations of wage theft. Both companies also agreed to provide sick leave and minimum base pay starting at $26 an hour. My colleague, Jenae Pierre, caught up with former Uber and Lyft driver Melangasima to talk about how the settlement will affect him and his fellow drivers. Can you tell me a bit more about how you started working for Uber and Lyft? I started working with Uber in 2014, and then two years after that, I got hired by Lyft on the Uber platform to work as a lift driver as well.

So a good 10 years with both companies collectively. I'm wondering, when did you start noticing a discrepancy between what the customer paid and what you were paid? Around 2017, after I got the first settlement winning, I woke up one day and I saw $7,000 in my account. And then I double checked and I was told that it was Uber who paid us the money that they were taking from us. as of sale tax and black car funds.

And then after that, I got lucky one time to have a customer who was complaining about the price he was charged. And then I explained them that I was not responsible for whatever they got charged. And in the course of the complaining, they showed me the screen, and I noticed that whatever they were charged was completely different from whatever Uber. told me that they charge the customer. So the Attorney General's investigation began back in 2020 after the New York Taxi Workers' Alliance, the TWA,

filed a complaint about wage theft. Now, the AG's office found the two companies improperly diverted hundreds of millions of dollars from driver's wages to pay taxes that should have been paid by passengers for several years. Now, you'll be getting around $25,000 from this settlement. How does that make you feel? Is that a good number? Do you feel like you're being properly compensated from 10 years of service?

Well, I think they should pay me more with the interests and everything. So more money is always better. But still, the amount that they're giving me is a significant amount to put changes in my life. I'll be able with this money to start my wife's dream business that I can put in place as soon as I get the money. So I can wait to receive the settlement. I'm curious, what more can New York City officials and New York State officials do to hold Uber and Lyft accountable? NYTWA, which I'm a member of, already putting a bill called 1078 deactivation bill. We would love to see Uber and lift stop deactivating drivers as they are doing right now.

Because of the state, allowed them to fire people with no repercussions. they're abusing those rules and you can be the best of the best drivers ever on their platform if one customer say one statement, but you cannot just turn somebody's life upside down just for a fake statement or a false statement with no evidence. And Malang, that's personal for you, right? You were deactivated, correct? I personally got deactivated from Uber, from Lyft before and then from Uber, just because of somebody

said a statement that is not true and that nobody didn't need to tell them to give them evidence. And even if I was driving with them for about 10 years

and never have I had any bad incidents with them, I'm a five-star driver. I'm a diamond-star driver. So everything in my situation, everything in my record is showing that I am not excellent, but I'm an excellent driver

for the company. They still went ahead and just deactivate me because somebody lied about me without them requesting any evidence. So I'm going through hardship right now. I'm going through all kind of hardship you can imagine because of that injustices from Uber and Lyft. I apologize for that, Malang, but congratulations on your settlement.

I hope that makes things a little bit better. Malang Kasama, a former Uber and Lyft driver. Thanks so much for your time. Thank you for having me. That's my colleague, Jena Pier, talking to former Uber and Lyft driver, Melang Gassima. Litt says they take safety reports from riders and drivers seriously. And if a driver disagrees with the action taken, they can ask for the decision to be reviewed.

The company says Malang's account remains permanently deactivated based on the evidence received and reviewed by their team. Uber says they built a robust process to review reports and allow drivers to dispute deactivations. Uber re-activated Malang's account after W&MIC reached out to the company about Malang's deactivated account. A new exhibit at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, a living memorial, to the Holocaust in Lower Manhattan seeks to introduce children to the history of the Holocaust. The exhibit highlights the heroism of the Danish resistance, which helped more than 7,000 Jews survive. Planning has been going on for months long before the Israel-Hamas war broke out last month, but organizers say its message about our shared humanity and resistance to hate is more important than ever.

Here's WMISC's Jessica Gould. As you enter the exhibit, a hologram of a teenage girl welcomes you. Hey, thanks for stopping by. Just give me one second. Her name is Rebecca. She's Jewish, living in Copenhagen when it was occupied by the Nazis. My father ran a general store. He sold the best ice cream in the whole city.

The Nazis forced him to sell his store for practically nothing. She's one of several holograms of young people, guiding children through the story of community and humanity in the face of genocide during World War II. In October 1943, the Nazis were getting ready to deport the Jews to concentration camps. We said, what do we have to do to get them out of here? But members of the Danish resistance hid them in basements, hospitals, and churches, and then smuggled them on fishing boats to Sweden. You were put down like sardines because they wanted to get as many as possible on the boat.

Most of the 8,000 Jews survived. The new exhibit is unusual, because it's geared to younger children, ages 9 to 12. So you won't find the more graphic images of the Holocaust here. The museum worked with kids from local schools to make sure text on the walls is accessible and clear. Curator Ellen Barry says they want this story to be an inspiring introduction to one of the darkest chapters in modern history.

This really is a story of hope. It shines a light on our shared humanity. I first took a tour right before the exhibit opened in early October. Just days later, Hamas attacked Israel, killing around 1,400 civilians. It was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Now the two sides are locked in a brutal war. More than 10,000 people have died in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. And globally, hate crimes have targeted both Muslims and Jews.

The Jewish Heritage Museum increased security following the attack. Barry says the core message of the exhibit is more important than ever. And I think for kids who may be really struggling with what's going on, it's a wonderful opportunity to see that even in the darkest times, it is possible to make moral decisions and do the right thing and stand up for what's right. It's a message that resonates with Imogen Williams. She plays the role of the teenager in the hologram, Rebecca. She's 18 and a student at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts and Queens.

Her grandfather was one of the young Jews rescued from Denmark by boat to Sweden. If the Danes did not help my family escape, I would not be here today. She says she hopes the exhibit will encourage empathy between people of all backgrounds. If we all learn about each other a little more, we will all learn to understand each other better. The exhibit, Courage to Act, Rescue in Denmark, is currently on view at the Museum of Jewish Heritage on Battery Place. That's WNYC's education reporter, Jessica Gould. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WNIC. Catch us every weekday three times a day.

I'm Sean Carlson. We'll be back tomorrow.