Airbnb has been working to combat racial discrimination across its platform; this week, the company released a six year report on how that’s going, as reported by Thrillist. Starting in 2016, Laura W. Murphy, a seasoned civil rights leader, began auditing Airbnb to assess discriminatory practices between hosts and guests. In 2019, Airbnb started efforts to combat the racial biases discovered through the audit; its Project Lighthouse launched in 2020 to reveal and tackle unfair practices for people of color. The initiative was developed with the racial justice organization Color of Change, and now Airbnb is sharing the results.
What did Project Lighthouse find?
That guests who are perceived to be Black are able to successfully book the stay of their choice 91.4 percent of the time, while guests perceived to be white have a better booking rate, 94.1 percent.
How can they even tell that?
Once you click ‘reserve’ on the website to book a particular stay, the hosts can then confirm or reject your reservation.
Is that racial disparity broken down among other racial groups?
Yes. The overall findings for the booking success rates are:
White: 94.1 percent
Asian: 93.4 percent
Latino/Hispanic: 93.4 percent
Other/Unknown: 93.2 percent
Black: 91.4 percent
How has Airbnb tackled that?
Four years ago, the company eliminated the host’s ability to see the guest’s profile picture until after the reservation is confirmed. That seemed to have a minor effect on the disparity between Black-perceived and white-perceived guests but didn’t improve the booking success rate for other perceived races.
What else has Airbnb done?
The Instant Book feature lets guests confirm a booking without the host’s involvement. Last month, Airbnb made changes to the platform that will enable an estimated 5 million more people to use the Instant Book feature, especially guests perceived to be Black. Guests who have broken Airbnb policies or a host’s house rules cannot qualify for Instant Book.
What else?
Airbnb learned that guests perceived to be Black or Latino/Hispanic have fewer reviews (the way a host can judge their past stays) than guests perceived to be white or Asian, so it is making it easier for all guests to receive reviews. One way that works is that now when a guest books a stay, they can register those who stay with them, who then ‘inherit’ the positive review of the main guest even if they have never themselves booked a stay.
Can’t Airbnb stop hosts from rejecting based on race?
The company is working to analyze reservation rejections to determine which were legitimate bounces (the host’s calendar changed or the guest’s needs—like an early check-in—didn’t work for the host) and which may have been based in discrimination.
How about educating the hosts?
Airbnb created a guide called ‘How to be an even more inclusive host’ that helps hosts ‘welcome guests of all abilities, genders and backgrounds.’ The guide includes eight different quick reads or videos on topics like, ‘Inclusive practices to make every guest feel welcome’ and ‘Practicing inclusive hospitality and combating bias.’ Additionally, the company will be introducing inclusion-focused programs next year.
What if you get bounced based on race?
Airbnb’s 2016 Open Doors Policy means that guests experiencing discrimination with their booking can get help with an alternative site. This involves a 24-hour Safety Line for urgent requests when guests don’t feel safe. Website updates will also make it easier for guests to report racial concerns.
What about slavery houses?
Airbnb now prohibits any stay at a structure set on a former plantation where enslaved people lived or worked and prohibits hosts from marketing any stay by glorifying slavery-related features of the property. This doesn’t apply, however, to Experiences (stays that include a hands-on component) that include reputable, educational tours of slavery-related spaces.
Is there more?
A lot more, including Airbnb’s efforts to be more inclusive for disabled guests. Read the full report here.