Voices
Airing frustration with Airbnb
I find the Airbnb website a perfect solution to my needs when travelling. Not having to stay at hotels but rather select a hospitality experience which suits my needs is really innovative.
Etienne Taitz, South Africa
The ability to grade hosts and have them grade you keeps both sides on their toes, while maintaining globally acceptable standards in hospitality and behaviour.
I am fully supportive of Airbnb keeping all shades of racism and discrimination out of the business arena. This is a difficult task, which until now has been well achieved.
It is therefore hugely disappointing to see Airbnb take a stance on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Of all the global conflicts, this is the one that Airbnb has decided to take sides on. What about Iran/Syria/Yemen/Myanmar and others?
Airbnb’s decision to remove accommodation offered in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) from its website shows which side of the political map it has chosen to support.
As Airbnb has taken a religious and political stance, and it is diagonally opposed to mine, I do not feel that I can support it any longer.
Should Airbnb return to being an apolitical, space renting organisation, then I would reconsider my decision to leave Airbnb.
Taitz says he sent the above letter to Airbnb management to put pressure on the company to stick to doing what it is good at, namely renting properties and not getting involved in regional conflicts.