Discriminatory guest review

[Jorge1656]

I have a guest that booked our property located in a predominantly Latin neighborhood in Miami. The area is known for a lot of cuban locals which previous guest have loved because they loved the music played and how local it made them feel. With all that said, we have a welcome book that we provide with recommendations and we also invite guests to provide feedback. When the guest left we noted that he left his guest's names as " Pancho, Pedro, Pecos, Paco, Perez" As his recommendation for future guest is to "check out the local emergency room. " We ask for the registered guest name and it was not those names. The picture on the profile for this guest is of a white male. We thought this guest made a mockery of our welcome book and were prepared he would somehow say something else discriminatory on our public review.  The guest left the following 5 star review "One thing worth a mention is that, at least on the outside, the Hialeah area appeared to be a bit rough around the edges. While we didn't experience any issues, it is advised to keep everything barred up and locked when feasible. This did not cause any hindrances to our stay, and the location was far enough away from the crazy Miami rush hour traffic." This is a very safe neighborhood and we are certain that his perceived opinion of Latins is what led him to leave the review that the area is rough around the edges and that guests should keep everything barred up. I have notified Airbnb and they are saying this not discriminatory.  Who on earth would want to book a neighborhood that is rough around the edges? I know I can let this go and reply to his review. But I don't think I am letting this one go. This is clearly against respect and inclusion that Airbnb promises . Any suggestions?

[Jorge1656]

@LauraMurphy

[Kate867]

@Jorge1656   Looking at the review he left, I am assuming that they were a bunch of men who had booked to attend the Grand Prix.  I don’t think they were trying to be discriminatory, but it is likely that they gave each other ‘nick names’ for their stay .. some people can do daft things like that without thinking.  The mention of the ER is only in your guest book, stating that it is excellent.  It is quite possible that one of them had a minor injury and had to attend to get it sorted out hence the comment.  All in all, I think it is a nice review which certainly would not put me off booking your place at all.  Clearly they had a fabulous time and would book again otherwise they would have not have left five stars.  Finally, people have different perceptions with regards to safety.  They did not say that they felt uncomfortable at all, just advised that people kept their belongings secured.  Sadly, with rising crime rates this can be said about any built up areas throughout the world.

[Mike-And-Jane0]

@Jorge1656 I think all your other reviews will mean that the 'bad' one will be ignored. Perhaps you could make more of the diverse nature of your location so people will know what to expect on arrival?

I assume Miami is now safer than when I used to visit (20 years ago) when rental cars were attacked to the extent that they passed a rule saying that rental cars  couldn't have any identifying stickers on them.

[Anonymous]

@Jorge1656 It's very possible that the guests' perception of the neighborhood was tainted by racial bias, but the public comments made no mention of that. So I don't think it fits the bill as discrimination - it's just a subjective opinion.

I wouldn't even recommend posting a response. No neighborhood is going to feel safe to 100% of the people who visit it, but guests with locations concerns have plenty of tools at their disposal to research the area, check the crime statistics and demographics, and look at Google Street View to see if it's their cup of tea. "Rough around the edges" is one way I'd describe my own neighborhood, affectionately, and I feel quite safe here. The vast majority of my visitors have found that to be part of its charm, and those who'd prefer a rich white suburb are best off booking elsewhere. 

[Marissa156]

@Jorge1656 , that guest book submission would have rattled me a bit too and deserves to be cut out and trashed. This unfunny “feedback” tinged with passive prejudice is not worth your mental space. I agree that his public review was likely influenced by perception bias but you have so many great reviews and this one will likely be buried soon by even more good reviews. If it’s really digging at you and must leave a comment, keep it short and upbeat/positive/welcoming maybe sharing a fact about the area or the safety of it. 

[Huma0]

@Jorge1656 

While I can see why this really irks you (especially the guest book entry), personally I am not sure if you should post a response to the review as it seems you don't often respond, so it will only make this one stand out more, rather than be buried under more recent ones as time goes on. 

If you do decide to respond, keep it calm and as neutral as possible. I wouldn't mention discrimination as, unlike in the guest book, there is nothing in the review that reveals this.

I do know how you feel though. I once had a guest leave a review that made my neighbourhood sound like the scariest place she'd ever been to, even though nothing bad happened to her at all. I don't know if the fact that it's a very multi-cultural neighbourhood influenced her perception of it, but I am guessing that could be the case. She said that there were many 'dodgy' looking types around. It seems like no one approached her or bothered her in any way, she just decided that these people looked 'dodgy' and advised other guests to walk quickly with their heads down.

I thought this was utterly stupid and was very tempted to respond but, after I cooled off a bit, decided it was not worth my time.