'Riding Up Front': Art Blog Share Stories Of Immigrant Taxi Drivers

Wei-En Tan is aiming to get the Americans to sympathize with their immigrant neighbor with "Riding Up Front." The immigrant herself created a blog that uses art and encouraged taxi passengers to start a conversation with their drivers, especially with immigrant backgrounds.

According to Mashable, Wei-En Tan created the "Riding Up Front" to stop the anti-immigrant attitude of some Americans by telling the stories of immigrants and refugee cab drivers from around the world now living in the United States. The stories are from immigrant passengers, recalling real conversations that they've had with their drivers, and then illustrated by artists.

The mission of "Riding Up Front" is to promote awareness of immigrant and refugee rights as well as understanding immigrant's experiences in a form of storytelling. The blog also raise funds to support the ACLU, the American Immigration Council, and the International Rescue Committee

According to San Diego Union-Tribune, in the "Riding Up Front" blog, one story tells of a Jamaican woman who is in the Marine Corps in San Diego who also drives for Lyft as a side job. The woman, who's given a pseudonym Aurora, tells Tan that she has two jobs she only sleeps for about four hours a night and cooks for her husband and three-year-old daughter.

Aurora also shared to Tan that she will teach her daughter how to work hard and save money and also how to love. What Tan learned from the story of Aurora is to have a positive way of thinking. Wei-En Tan is the vice president of MACH Energy, a company that helps large buildings manage their energy usage. Because of her work, she travels a lot, meaning she often uses ride-sharing services like Lyft and Uber.

Tan then wanted to better relate to other people emotionally. And since she believes that talking to a stranger for a very long time can give rise to an intimacy and honesty that is very confessional, she began sitting in the passenger seat to start a conversation with them.  Then the "Riding Up Front" blog was conceived.

TagsImmigrant Taxi Drivers, Riding Up Front, Art Blog Stories of Immigrant Taxi Drivers, Wei-En Tan, Riding Up Front To Stop Anti-Immigrant, Rising Up Front Goals, Riding Up Front Blog