At Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Somali Muslim cab drivers are refusing taxi service to passengers carrying alcohol. (Hat tip: Dan.)

The airports commission is accepting this, and giving special instructions to taxi starters at curbside.

The airports commission has struggled with the issue for several years. Alcohol is a serious concern for devout Muslims, said Hassan Mohamud, an imam and vice president of the society. The Qur’an, Islam’s holy book, strictly forbids buying, selling, drinking or carrying alcohol.

The observant drivers object only to transporting openly displayed alcohol, said Ali Culed, a Somali Muslim who’s been driving an airport cab for eight years. They won’t search passengers or quiz them about what’s in their bags. “It is a religious issue,” Culed said. “I cannot force anybody to change their belief, but not in my cab. I don’t want the guilt. I just want to be an innocent person.”

Hogan said taxi starters at curbside will look for duty-free bags with bottles or other obvious signs of alcohol and steer riders to cabs whose drivers don’t object to booze.

Flight attendant Eva Buzek said she was refused service in March after she told a driver to be careful with her suitcase because it had wine in it. Other drivers in the taxi line passed the word, she said, and four more refused her service. A dispatcher finally steered her to a driver who would take the fare.

Buzek, who grew up in Poland, said her treatment goes against American values. “I came to this country and I didn’t expect anybody to adjust to my needs,” she said. “I don’t want to impose my beliefs on anyone else. That’s why I’m in this country, because of the freedom.”

“What’s going to be next? … Do I have to cover my head?”