report of racism encountered in Palo Alto and Menlo Park Airbnbs

Mei-Lin0
Level 2
Palo Alto, CA

report of racism encountered in Palo Alto and Menlo Park Airbnbs

This was posted in our NextDoor today - I found it disturbing and I am raising the flag because there is no place I can find to connect to Airbnb to let them know that this is happening

 

Do other hosts have this problem that issues that are bad Public Communications are raised locally- but there is no one human being that Airbnb assigns to learn about about this

 

In the rush to automation inside Airbnb - I wonder if anyone has considered that the Airbnb experience for hosts and superhosts like myself is designed to minimize all human interaction? Ironic isn't it that a company which is bring human to human connection to the world, is  itself operated like  a machine with no human contact channel available for matters outside of what the Airbnb leaders have considered they want to hear about? Other than for things Airbnb has thought about, there appears to be no channel for information outside of the bubble that has been constructed by Airbnb about Airbnb.

 

All of the following words are from the post on Next door

 

Title: Airbnb racism in Menlo Park and Palo Alto

 

I work in Menlo Park. One of the leading consultants my institution works with is a black woman from Alabama. She comes to Silicon Valley once or twice a month. She recently told me that she only stays in hotels here because it has been difficult to find Airbnbs that will rent to her. When she first started coming three or four years ago, she would inquire about Airbnbs listed as available only to be told by the owners that they were not available. She and a white male friend decided to conduct an experiment: each time she inquired about an Airbnb and was told it was not available for her desired dates, he would then do the same. Most of the time, he was told it was available and offered the rental. I’m not surprised by this, but I am shocked. That racism exists here is not surprising. (Racist housing practices are baked into the area's history.*) That a close colleague of mine has experienced explicit, to-her-face racism from people in this highly educated, global community that likes to think of itself as open-minded is shocking. It calls to mind this Kamau Bell quote: “Here’s a truism I hear about black people: In the North, they don't care how high you get as long as you don't get too close; in the South they don't care how close you get as long as you don't get too high. In the North, you could be a black doctor as long as you don’t live too close. In the South, they don't want you to be a doctor but you can live across the street.”

13 Replies 13
Mei-Lin0
Level 2
Palo Alto, CA

I forgot to mention - the only channel I know is to go public @Airbnb2 on twitter - might do that in 24 hours if no response received

Susan151
Level 10
Somerville, MA

@Mei-Lin0. This is not the only story just like this one [though I have always hated that Kamau Bell which is inaccurate at best.] In fact, stories like the one posted on NextDoor are exactly why we as hosts can no longer see a profile picture until the booking request has turned into a reservation.

 

I would say, however, that with the introduction of Instant Booking, this woman should have been able to book AirBNB listings without as many issues. I wonder if she bothered.

Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

I've heard this story before. Maybe not about this specific person but many instances like this exist and have been in the news. Innclusive.com and Noirbnb have started in response to the discrimination known within Airbnb. Airbnb is trying hard to stop this with booking options like Instant booking and now the no photo before a reservation is accepted policy. We shall see how it plays out.

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Mei-Lin0 @Emilia42 @Susan151

This exact extract has been around for some years now. I first saw it show up on the 'Quora' forum site in 2016! 

It saddens me that there are some in society who will go out of their way to perpetuate racism, sexism, segregation and division for no other reason than the fact that they can with a high degree of anonimity.

 

We all become victims of the tarts who tout this stuff and no matter how hard we try, it's a bit like our review stats.......... for every 100 people we show kindness and respect to, their will be one that will tarnish our perfect record and be the one that is talked about.

Treat it with a grain of salt Mei Lin and with a bit of luck, if this is typical of what he espouses..... Karma will come to Kamau Bell and 'social networking sites' that feel this is a cool way to hold their neighbourhoods together !!!

 

Cheers......Rob

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Emilia42 Instant Book and no profile photo visible before booking is confirmed will do nothing towards people not being discriminated against. What's the point of having their booking confirmed by a racist host, only to get that racism shoved in their face when they arrive at the listing?

@Sarah977, the top execs at Airbnb sure think it will. Maybe it will force these racists off of the platform.

@Emilia42 I don't see how. And why put guests who might be discriminated against on arrival at risk like that? There have been a few posts by guests who are in demographics that get discriminated against saying they consider it a security risk for them to be accepted by someone who has predjudiced views, that they would prefer to be declined at the outset. 

Ben551
Level 10
Wellington, New Zealand

@Sarah977@Emilia42  I actually think one of the most valid reasons against the "no profile pic" change is the need for guests to protect themselves from having a reservation accepted by a "problem host" (i.e. a racist or bigot) who would discriminate or make their stay uncomfortable. 

 

My wife was talking about this the other day with her colleagues in a group discussion. Apparently the danger to potential guests extends far beyond physical danger after a booking is made, but apparently steps back even further to before a booking is made.  It translates to massive anxiety about being placed in a situation with an intolerant host.  The fear is so great for many potential guests that they will simply avoid home hosting situations like Airbnb altogether, unless they know they will be accepted.

 

It's easy to say "well these hosts will be uncovered now the change has been made" but the question is - at the expense of what?  The safety and dignity of guests who are put in the firing line?  Is that really a safe answer?

 

I personally think there is a lack of robust debate from all sides on this particular challenge to the "no pic" rule...

Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

@Ben@Sarah977, that's one of the reasons why Instant booking can be such a great thing. Immediate 'acceptance' without the anxiety of a decline. But either way, the picture is going to be of my face only and my message will read "Hello, I'll be traveling with my partner, Meghan. Looking forward to staying at your place." Picture or no picture, communication is the most important thing.

@Emilia42   For some reason you're not getting what we're saying at all. The "anxiety" of a decline is nothing compared to being accepted by a predjudiced host only to have that predjudice apparent when the guest arrives. Most guests would want to avoid that kind of scenario. Instant Book achieves the exact opposite.

Emilia42
Level 10
Orono, ME

@Sarah, why would a prejudiced host accept a guest they are prejudiced against? That doesn’t make much sense to me.

@Emilia42 Because the guest Instant Booked or the host can't see the guest's photo before a booking request is confirmed! That's the whole point we're trying to make here.

Guest "Josie", who happens to be black and a lesbian, sends a booking request. The host can no longer see her profile photo, which is of her and her Asian girlfriend. Host accepts the request. Host can then see the photo but booking has been confirmed. Host is predjudiced but doesn't cancel the booking because he doesn't want to incur penalties or lose the booking $. Josie arrives with her partner, gets a very cold reception, maybe some disparaging comments. Now Josie is left having to either put up with the bad vibes or call Airbnb to cancel the booking, go traipsing to another listing, which may be a lot more expensive, or a hotel.

Don't you think Josie would have been happier to get declined at the outset, before her booking was confirmed, so she and her girlfriend could have looked for a better place to book where the host was open and friendly?

Amanda52
Level 2
Menlo Park, CA

@Mei-Lin0 I'm a host here in Menlo Park and I would be VERY open to hosting her!  Our team is super international and the owners I work with are of all ethnicities (American, Chinese, Indian, African American).  We welcome guests from every corner of the world! I got very angry with a guest who recently made racist comments about one of my team members.  Anyway - we would welcome her with open arms and join 100% in being accepting of guests of all cultures and ethnicities. Anything other than that boggles my mind!!  I was upset that Airbnb didn't support us more about our racist guest. But I know it's really hard to enforce these kinds of things at a platform level. That said - we will do anything and everything to be as inclusive and welcoming as we can - in hopes that others eventually embrace this policy as well. She can book my places here:  https://www.airbnb.com/users/4358242/listings