An Uber passenger was surprised when the driver told her she had to speak English in her car.
The incident occurred in Perth last month when a Colombian visitor claimed the Uber driver said he could only speak English in Australia and not his native Spanish.
TikToker Alejandra shared part of the interaction with the driver in a post titled ‘When the Uber driver tells me that if I’m in Australia I HAVE to speak only English.’
In the video, she is in the back seat of the car talking to the driver and says she was on the phone with her friend.
She defended herself by saying: ‘This is our language. Spanish is my language and I will always speak Spanish if I want. Even if I’m here in Australia.
The Uber driver’s response was not clear in the video.
‘What I’m saying is show respect. I’m talking to my friend, personal things, and I shouldn’t be thinking, “Oh, maybe I can speak in English so he hears all the gossip,” Alejandra said.
The driver defended his point of view, but again his response was not clear.
‘This is our language. Spanish is my language and I will always speak Spanish if I want. Even if I’m here in Australia,” said TikToker Alejandra (pictured).
The Uber driver finally admitted he was wrong and told her, “It’s okay, I’m sorry.” I apologize.’
Alejandra said, ‘(Speaking Spanish) is my thing,’ and told the driver, ‘we’re not making fun of you.’
‘We do not care. We’re just talking about our personal things, our personal lives, so I don’t understand what the problem is.’
The Uber driver finally admitted he was wrong and told her, “It’s okay, I’m sorry.” I apologize.’
The rideshare driver’s actions were brutally reviewed by TikTok users.
‘Fuck off. She’s talking to her friend and she can speak any damn language she wants. Who the hell are you to say what language she speaks? said one viewer.
‘I wonder what language you speak when you travel to countries where English is not spoken.’ said another.
‘But I’m sure that Uber driver would never speak Spanish if he came here on vacation. English speakers are very selfish.
Another said the driver should be reported: “You can report him to Uber for his behavior, but you can still do it weeks or months later.”
One response attacked Alejandra: ‘The problem is your (sic) from Colombia and these South Americans always so noisy and uneducated. Please inform yourself first.’
To which she replied: ‘How funny. Are you telling me to educate myself first while discriminating against not only my country but also all the countries in South America?