Airbnb Hosts Guilty of Sexual and Racial Discrimination - #AirBnBWhileBlack
 |
| Eideias |
Founded in August 2008, the company has properties available from either end of the scale, luxury and moderate, and prides itself on creating "unique travel experiences". Airbnb is now 8 years from inception, and there are some contemporary problems that have fallen to the wayside in that time.
For a while now, #AirbnbWhileBlack has been spreading awareness of racial discrimination from hosts who reportedly reference user profile pictures and names to screen against African American guests. This recognized discrimination, which is publicly acknowledged, first started July 2015, when unlikely guest Quirtina Crittenden was continually denied properties by hosts. It wasn't until she revamped her profile with a nickname, Tina, and put a cityscape as her picture that she successfully rented from Airbnb, according to NPR's Hidden Brain podcast.
This racial discrimination is not only committed by hosts, but additionally by guests who give more business to white hosts, earning them 12% more on average. Compare this to African American hosts who charge 14% less for properties of a similar location, host score, and characteristic nature. A simple review of the hashtag brings up dozens of red button topics.
Airbnb host gets (rightfully) banned for racist messages #AirbnbWhileBlack https://t.co/8kEbBarT21 pic.twitter.com/DEmeKgzZq1— HuffPost BlackVoices (@blackvoices) June 2, 2016
My article "Shut Out of Airbnb" in @FordhamULJ shares remedy for #sharingeconomy discrimination https://t.co/UDnHq7idvy #AirbnbWhileBlack— Jamila Jefferson (@jamilajeff) May 27, 2016
Airbnb terms do prohibit discrimination in all instances where their service is used; evidently, that's been hard for users to respect.
#AirBnBWhileBlack Shows We Need Stronger Civil Rights Laws for the Sharing Economy https://t.co/be9Hb1rlQE— Smith&Co (@Justica4all) May 24, 2016
#AirbnbWhileBlack: Airbnb is being sued for letting its hosts be racist https://t.co/vzAUtwl71x— Vocativ (@vocativ) May 22, 2016
Enter #Noirbnb and #Noirebnb, two distinct companies who share confusingly similar names in addition to a vision: to offer temporary lodging services for African Americans. With a paper trail of discrimination lawsuits and testimonies, this idea is no shocker. At least for those aware of the shortcomings on #AirbnbWhileBlack.
 |
| ScoopNest |
 |
Rohan Gilkes was jarred into action after he was denied rental only to have his white friend book the same property without issue. After sharing his experience, Noirebnb was born. In a similarly horrible turn of events, Noirbnb came about when entrepreneurs Ronnia Cherry and Stefan Grant had the cops called on them while attempting to enter their rental through Airbnb.
Yo! The Air B&B we're staying at is so nice, the neighbors thought we were robbing the place & called the cops! 😂 pic.twitter.com/XUQjuyCXMO— THE DOPEGOD (@STEFisDOPE) October 9, 2015
Airbnb paid for Cherry and Grant to fly to San Francisco to determine the merit or Noirbnb. About his pitch, Grant says, "we told them it [racial discrimination] would happen again. I am not sure if they thought we were joking or if they didn't take us seriously." Apparently, Airbnb didn't respond quickly enough, and Noirbnb opened without their backing. Hopefully, Noirbnb and Noirebnb can fill this gap in the market while Airbnb figures out how to get a handle on the situation.
 |
| Digital Trends |
I was denied @Airbnb because I disclosed that I'm trans. Airbnb did nothing. Had I not disclosed I'd be "dishonest" pic.twitter.com/jEkbEFIG2r— Shadi Petosky (@shadipetosky) June 5, 2016
Shadi Petrosky, Hollywood producer and "accidental transsexual travel activist," tweeted that she was denied a property because she revealed that she is transgender. At first, when Petrosky brought the problem to Airbnb, she was ignored. The host, instead of being confronted for discrimination as is laid out in the agreed upon terms, was upgraded to "super-host" status. Thousands of retweets later, and with a vicious force that's fast becoming a benchmark in our time, Twitter spread the news far and wide until it couldn't possibly be ignored.
Airbnb was quick to respond after Twitter started getting out of hand. The company is launching an internal review, and has outsourced help from Laura Murphy, former head of the American Civil Liberties Union. Additionally, spokesman Nick Papas has tweeted that "Discrimination has no place in the Airbnb community," before suspending the guilty host's account indefinitely. Employees and a handful of hosts are being given unconscious bias training.
Wow rainbow-fied logo and pride month pinned tweet? Weird that Airbnb has no LGBTQ non discrimination policy. https://t.co/KmAHcjUEpY— Shadi Petosky (@shadipetosky) June 6, 2016
The crux of the matter is that Airbnb needs to update their terms of service to include sexual discrimination. Simply including sexual discrimination in their terms, as they have with racial discrimination, is a huge step in the right direction. An ideal outcome would be to have a non-discrimination policy towards LGBTQ specifically.
Thankfully, this may happen soon. Airbnb should be applauded for its quick responses to several incidents of discrimination (with the correct prompting from social media outrage). As they are fully aware of the discrimination issues, as of March, Airbnb hired David King III to be a "Director of Diversity and Belonging." At a meetup for Airbnb hosts last fall, seminars and panel discussions were held on unconscious bias with future plans to expand on relevant topics.
 |
| Digiday |
Jacqui
Litvan, wielding a bachelor's degree in English, strives to create a world of
fantasy amidst the ever-changing landscape of military life. Attempting to
become a writer, she fuels herself with coffee (working as a barista) and music
(spending free time as a raver). Follow her @Songbird_Jacqui
Contact
us on Twitter,
on Facebook, or
leave your comments below. To find out about social media training or
management why not take a look at our website for more info: TheSMFGroup.com
Airbnb Hosts Guilty of Sexual and Racial Discrimination - #AirBnBWhileBlack
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Thursday, June 09, 2016
Rating:
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Thursday, June 09, 2016
Rating:
Unknown
Keeping you up to date on social media, digital marketing, apps, news & reviews. Social media, and digital marketing as a whole, are rapidly and constantly changing, adapting to new developments at an ever increasing rate. Just keeping up to date can be a nightmare. Our team of writers know their field, and keep an ear to the ground. We aim to keep you informed of all recent developments in the online world, and teach you a little something along the way. So whether you just want to stay connected, or gain some knowledge for yourself, the Social Songbird will keep on singing! More articles are posted every day so keep checking back! Join the discussion on Twitter - #SocialSongbird Or contact us directly - @SocialSongbird_
Entrepreneur, international speaker on Social Media Marketing. First one in the UK to write and speak in conferences about Twitter as a marketing tool. Consultant to Corporate Companies, Government Organizations, Marketing Managers and Business Owners.
Aspiring novelist with a passion for fantasy and crime thrillers. He hopes to one day drop that 'aspiring' prefix. He started as a writer and soon after he was made Executive Editor and Manager of the team at Social Songbird. A position he held for 5 years.
Adrienne is a passionate writer with experience in editing, content creation, and social media marketing. She’s a lover of animals, helping others improve their writing, and 2000s pop culture.
Musician, audio technician, professional tutor and a Cambridge university English student. Interested in writing, politics and obsessed with reading.
Recently graduated with a BA in English Literature from the University of Exeter, and he is about to study an MA in Journalism at the University of Sheffield. He is an aspiring journalist and novelist; in his free time he enjoys playing chess, listening to music and taking long walks through nature.
Lucy is an undergraduate BSc Politics and International Relations student at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Anna Coopey is a 4th year UG student in Classics at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. She is a keen writer and researcher on a number of topics, varying from Modern Greek literature to revolutionary theory.
Ellie is a recent BA English Literature graduate and aspiring publisher with a passion for writing. Her favourite pastimes include reading and shopping.