A Melbourne teenager has shared messages between herself and a Melbourne Airbnb host, resulting in the host being removed from the popular accommodation booking platform.
The host, who has been identified as ‘Helen’, reportedly told her prospective guest that “if you are black, please forgive us for not receiving you”.
18-year-old Sadia Mohamed requested to book the property later this month, from the 28th – 30th November, to celebrate a birthday with her sister.
Upon receiving the message from the host, she replied “Give me my money back right now cause I am black. I do not appreciate this at all! This is pure RACISM. In a time like today especially, I’ll be sure to report you immediately.”
The host replied saying it wasn’t her fault, claiming “the whole building is like this, and the building management gave us an ultimatum. I’m not discriminating against anyone, we really don’t have the ability to deal with this, because it’s happened more than once”.
She then proceeded to accuse the teen of being disrespectful, saying that ‘respect is not hard, it comes from everyone’s upbringing’.
After the teen shared the conversation on social media, other users came forward sharing their own experiences. Another guest showed a message where the host said “I’m sorry we don’t take blacks”.
Airbnb have removed the host, and have confirmed that the matter will continue to be investigated.
“Airbnb’s mission is to create a world where everyone can belong anywhere. This is something we care deeply about and are absolutely committed to,” Airbnb’s Head of Public Policy for Australia, Derek Nolan said in a statement. “Discrimination is unacceptable and has no place in our community”.
“We enforce a strict non-discrimination policy and under our Open Doors initiative, if a guest feels they have been discriminated against, we will provide personalised support to ensure they find a place to stay.”
Sadia is now considering making a formal complaint to the Human Rights Commission or the Victorian Human Rights Commission over her treatment by the host.
In Victoria, it is illegal for anyone to be refused accommodation based on their race.