Tell Uber: Believe survivors. Stop sexual assaults.

The petition to Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, Chief Product Officer Sachin Kansal, and President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Jill Hazelbaker reads:

I am writing to urge you to BELIEVE survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, and work with them to make Uber rides safe.

For women and gender-expansive people, going out at night alone can be terrifying. And while getting into an Uber feels safer than walking alone, you can imagine our fears when we read in The New York Times a year ago that Uber riders reported one incident of sexual misconduct every eight minutes. You reassured your women riders that you would handle these reports and any subsequent legal claims in a way that is best for the survivor.

Here we are a year later, and The New York Times has reported that Uber is doing the exact opposite in court: retraumatizing survivors by questioning their character and mental health, and even deposing a survivor's abusive father. This malicious strategy is completely unacceptable and, as we know from experience, only further silences survivors--who almost never report what's been done to them. It's the reason most perpetrators of sexual assaults get away with their crimes. 

Please be on the right side of history, believe survivors, and work with them to ensure women feel safe in Uber cars. If you don't, our national community of women, survivors, and allies will take our business elsewhere.

If anyone needs to clean up their behavior, it's Uber. A year ago, following an explosive report by The New York Times, we sent the company a list of demands that would have signaled Uber's seriousness in protecting women, who were the majority of those who filed sexual misconduct complaints and lawsuits:

• Believing drivers and riders who report sexual harassment, assault, or any form of sexual misconduct.
• Conducting timely investigations of incidents and publicly sharing trends.
• Mandating an annual sexual misconduct prevention training for all drivers.
• Banning drivers and riders who have sexual misconduct records or reports of sexual misconduct against them.

Based on more recent reporting by The Times, it appears that the company has made some strides to take these sexual assault and misconduct reports seriously. However, in court, the company's attorneys have reverted to decades-old tropes, grilling survivors on what they were wearing, if they were drinking, and if they had had previous experiences of sexual abuse. Uber's attorneys have "deposed the women's friends, parents, spouses, exes and therapists, according to transcripts reviewed by The Times.”

In other words, contrary to Uber behaving "in a way that is best for the survivor," the company is actually retraumatizing these brave women for coming forward. Uber’s malicious behavior is the reason why the majority of sexual assaults are never reported, and perpetrators are almost never held accountable.

Women and survivors deserve safety. Tell Uber that we are paying attention, and we will take our business elsewhere if it keeps bullying survivors in court and fails to protect us from sexual assault.