Yes they were. I know because I was damn near raised in cabs* (my mother didn't deal with public transportation like that back then, I was raised to always carry cabfare from wherever I was going, anyway...). I remember distinctly the first African cab driver we had bc he said black Americans always have "beeeeeeg earrings" and that shyt was hilarious to us. Little did we know, that was a sign of deeper rot.
Show me proof. By the time 116th happened, they had long been indoors, in the Mart. There was no reason for nobody to be calling on them, tho I did hear they was up to some illegality in there, so maybe that was it. But if so, why reward them with 116th?.
* I damn near remember all the numbers: day/night, etc, iykyk.