Short-term rental company Airbnb is wildly popular, with many people around the globe using it to find affordable accommodation while travelling, or leasing out their own places to make a bit of extra cash.
The website has it’s fair share of problems though, including numerous reported cases of racism, particularly in the case of black hosts or potential renters.
One such story has seen a host in North Carolina receiving a ban from the site after he used racist language to tell a woman she was no longer welcome, even after she had booked a room, because she was black.
Shani Taylor tweeted the screenshot of the conversation, which was between her friend at the Kellog School of Management at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and the bigoted host.
My friend and classmate here at Kellogg had a hateful and racist encounter with an @Airbnb host. pic.twitter.com/rFHlwqy5sQ
— Shani C. Taylor (@shanictaylor) May 31, 2016
Airbnb spokesman Nick Papas responded quickly, and the host was banned:
“We were horrified when we read these messages. The language and conduct are unacceptable and violate both our policies and everything we believe in. This host has been removed from Airbnb and we’ve reached out to the guest to offer our full and complete support, including ensuring the guest has a safe place to stay” said spokesman Nick Papas.
CEO Brian Chesky tweeted:
The incident in NC was disturbing and unacceptable. Racism and discrimination have no place on Airbnb. We have permanently banned this host.
— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) June 1, 2016
