RACISM MUST BE STAMPED OUT

We have been, in the past very big users of taxis. In Wellington we always use Status. In Auckland its Co-op if the Government is paying and Corporate if they aren't.
Auckland is still a big mystery to us and we rely on taxi drivers having a reasonable understanding of they city so we get to where we want to go on time.

Status drivers are a melting pot of races and religious persuasions. Over the years they have made our lives richer with new knowledge of far away places.

We were saddened to see yet another attack on a taxi driver in Auckland. He was a veterinarian in his home country so he is no intellectual slug. He has been unable to get work here as a veterinarian so he turned to taxi driving and then someone beats him up and tears off his turban. It is part of his religion as a Sikh, so the removal of his turban comes with some measure of embarrassment and shame.

It is not this good man who should be ashamed - it is us.

We are increasingly becoming a society that does not tolerate differences.

In Invercargill it is the Gypsy wagoners.

Sadly the stories of bashing up and harassing of people who are "different" is becoming so common place that they are not making the front pages - the incidences are becoming side bar stories.

The Invercargill story is particularly galling. The gypsies are parked on the city fringes about three blocks from the city police station.

We are a good nation but to become a great one we need to ensure that our children grow up tolerant of differences and embrace those who add another dimension to our already rich culture.

There is a nasty vindictive racist element that is raging in our society and simply,and collectively we need to put a stop to this burgeoning evil.