A young Sydney mother has been banned from Uber’s ride-sharing and food delivery service because the company said her name was offensive, even though it is common in some countries.
Swastika Chandra’s given name means good luck and prosperity in the ancient Sanskrit language, which is an important part of her identity as a Hindu.
However, in Western countries the word swastika is more commonly associated with the symbol used by the Nazi Party of Germany in the 20th century, which was inspired by the Eastern religious motif.
Because the Nazi symbol is still used by those who promote anti-Semitic beliefs, Uber banned the word swastika and any other terms associated with anti-Israel sentiment after the October 7 attacks in the country.
As a result, the 35-year-old mother was a victim of Uber’s purge and could no longer use the app.
Chandra grew up in Fiji, where the first name Swastika was common among the Pacific nation’s large Indian community.
‘It’s a very common name. “I personally know four or five other girls with the same name,” she said. A current issue. ‘It means good luck. It means good things to me.’
Sydney mother Swastika Chandra (pictured) has been banned from Uber’s ride-sharing service because her name, while common in some countries, is considered offensive in Australia and most other places.
Swastika Chandra’s first name means good luck and prosperity in the ancient Sanskrit language, which is an important part of her identity as a Hindu, but Uber (logo pictured) didn’t see it that way.
His name appears on his birth certificate, his Australian citizenship certificate, his Medicare card and his driver’s license, but last October Uber banned his account.
“I was ordering food one afternoon and I went to the checkout stage and this pop-up appeared saying, ‘Your name is in violation and you need to change your name in the app,'” he said.
Chandra acknowledges that her name is associated with the Nazis in most people’s minds, but they need to understand her origins.
“They don’t know that Hindus used it for thousands of years before Hitler used it incorrectly,” he said. ‘It takes a little education.
‘I am very proud of my name. I believe in the good that comes with it and I won’t change it for anyone.’
Nearly six months after banning her, Uber finally admitted that Chandra was an innocent victim of its ban, apologized to her, and gave her a waiver to continue using her name on the app.
He was helped by the fact that his case was taken up by Australia’s peak Hindu body, the Hindu Council, and the support of the Jewish community.
“Under the circumstances, it is clear that there is a material difference between Ms. Chandra innocently and without malice using her natural name and the display of a sinister symbol to promote hatred or foment division,” the Jewish Board of Deputies said in a release. .
The Hindu community is now honoring Chandra for refusing to change her name on the app and promoting her heritage.
He also has a message for everyone else who may have a different name than everyone else.
“Don’t let the past be a springboard for your future,” he said. ‘Be proud of your name. It’s your identity, it’s who you are.’
Not only is Ms. Chandra’s given name Swastika, but she also wears a swastika (pictured) on a necklace.
Uber’s Australian office said so ‘has a global policy of restricting access to users whose names entered in the Uber app contain potentially offensive words.
‘(But) we understand that there are different cultural nuances to names and therefore our teams address incidents like this on a case-by-case basis to ensure we evaluate each account fairly.
“In this case, after reviewing Ms. Chandra’s application, we restored her access to the application.”
The company also acknowledged that the situation “took longer than we expected” to resolve.