A PLUS-SIZED rapper has sued American taxi service Lyft after claiming a driver refused to pick her up over fears she could “burst his tyres”.
Humiliated Dank Demoss, real name Dajua Blanding, 36, recorded her heated argument with the Lyft driver on whether she could fit into his vehicle.
Blanding insisted: “I can fit in this car.”
The driver confidently responded in the clip: “Believe me, you can’t.”
Despite the driver saying he would refund the rapper on her ride, she sued the ride-hailing service claiming she was discriminated against.
Shamed Blanding said to Fox 2: “I’ve been in cars smaller than that.
“I just want them to know that it hurt my feelings.”
After she posted the video on her Instagram page, it quickly became popular, with many people coming to the defense of the Lyft driver. They mentioned that perhaps the woman should have listened to him and ordered a larger XL vehicle.
One comment said: “It’s against the law to overload a car.
“The driver was very polite, he explained his valid reasons, and even apologized.
“Try seeing things from another’s perspective.”
In the video circulating social media, Blanding said in the caption she felt “discriminated” against by the driver.
She said: “AM I WRONG? Lyft what have you all got to say about this driver [who] discriminated against me?
“I just feel like you all treat big people like s***.
“Like we don’t belong here.”
The rapper filed a lawsuit against the Lyft driver, claiming she was unfairly treated.
She said in her legal action that she suffered emotional distress and humiliation.
The driver pulled up in a Mercedes Benz sedan before looking his doors and attempting to drive away when he saw her, Blanding says in her suit.
She claims that when she confronted him, the driver told her she was too big to fit in his backseats and said his tired couldn’t support her weight.
Shocked Blanding responded in the clip: “What do I have to do with your tires?”
The lawyers representing the woman, Jonathan Marko, and Zach Runyan, claimed that the Lyft driver’s refusal to accept the passenger amounted to discrimination since weight is considered a protected characteristic in Michigan.
Marko told Fox 2: “I knew that it was illegal, and I knew that it was wrong.”
The attorney also equated the refusal to pick up Blanding to “refusing someone transportation based on their race or religion”.
Runyan added: “Refusing someone transportation based on their weight is not only illegal, but dangerous.
“Imagine the consequences if Ms. Blanding were unable to seek shelter after the driver left her stranded.
“This could have ended even worse than it did.”
Blanding mentioned in a past social media post that she weighed over 500lbs.
The rapper also revealed in December that she was intending to lose weight and had lost over 40lbs.
In response to the incident, a spokesperson from Lyft informed The Sun that the company strongly denounces any form of discrimination. They emphasized their commitment to a community where every individual is treated with the same level of respect and kindness.
“Our community guidelines and terms of service explicitly prohibit harassment or discrimination.”
