A drivers’ advocate and former taxi driver, SLU student Mohammad “Tipu” Sultan has been named one of “The 2025 Unsung Heroes” by City & State New York. Sultan is a Labor Studies bachelor’s student and recent recipient of SLU’s Joseph S. Murphy Scholarship for Diversity in Labor.
Since 2004, Sultan volunteered and worked at the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, leading numerous campaigns including efforts to cap the number of for-hire vehicles, institute debt forgiveness for medallion owners, and assert the rights of app-based drivers. Sultan has also participated in local advocacy movements alongside tenant associations, the New York Immigration Coalition, the March for Education, the Street Vendor Project, and Fight for $15, and has worked alongside international human rights organizations to support global efforts for workers and human rights.
City & State said that Sultan “keeps one of New York City’s most vital labor movements connected and organized, building unity in a diverse and demanding industry. A former yellow cab driver turned organizer with the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, Sultan fields around-the-clock calls from more than 10,000 drivers, helping them navigate city agencies, resolve disputes, and organize for change. He was a driving force in the 2021 hunger strike and City Hall protest that led to historic debt relief for drivers.”