Source: Arturo Holmes / Getty
For all the advancements we can accredit to Airbnb, the now-global rental app for vacations or any need in-between when it comes to room and board, it’s also had a fair share of racial discrimination controversies over the years — remember those “slave cabin” rentals?
Singer/actress Fantasia Barrino, lead star of the upcoming musical remake to The Color Purple arriving in theaters on Christmas Day, might’ve just experienced her own #AirbnbWhileBlack situation recently based on the way she broke down the incident that occurred during her son’s birthday party.
My stomach is so uneasy this morning as I’m riding back to my home in the cold and rain. I don’t say much when people do me wrong, but I can’t stay quiet on how my family and I were just treated from a host with @Airbnb @airbnbhelp trying to kick my kids and I out at 12:00…
— Fantasia Taylor (@TasiasWord) December 17, 2023
#AirBnB Fantasia is Getting PUT OUT @8AM after RACIST neighbors call POLICE on them last night!
♬ original sound – FantasiaTakeover
RELATED: New Airbnb Practice In Oregon Seeks To Prevent Discrimination For Black Guests
Making sure the whole world got the message by writing on Twitter/X, posting on Instagram and even giving a video recollection via her IG Live, Fantasia says she was left feeling “uneasy” and as if we “lost our eternal compass of love” as a society. Hosts of the Mooresville, North Carolina residence allegedly kicked out the singer (a N.C. native herself) in the wee midnight hours for what they perceived to be a loud party. The GRAMMY-winning artist fired back by insisting that it was a house of approximately eight pre-teens, well under the age of 16 years old, who were in the middle of a child-friendly Sip-N-Paint with hot chocolate.
The company did respond soon after via its @AirbnbHelp account, writing, “Hi Fantasia, Airbnb does not condone discrimination in any way. You can view our Nondiscrimination Policy here: http://air.do/6014RrtEK Please send us a DM with the email address connected to your booking, so our team can follow up. Thank you.” However, it appears the Christmas After Midnight crooner is looking for a bit more to be done on their part.
Hi Fantasia, Airbnb does not condone discrimination in any way. You can view our Nondiscrimination Policy here: https://t.co/6U6NcNnC7U Please send us a DM with the email address connected to your booking, so our team can follow up. Thank you. https://t.co/WCQEFGIlXC
— Airbnb Help (@AirbnbHelp) December 17, 2023
While many have been coming to Fantasia’s defense since it first went viral over the weekend, some are questioning whether she understood that, well, policy is policy. Airbnb is known to restrict guests from throwing parties, which definitely might include a group of 12-year-olds with messy paint and hot chocolate in tow. We couldn’t help but wonder ourselves: does policy always trump party, even for the glitterati?
Take a look at what people are saying about Fantasia’s #AirbnbWhileBlack situation below, and let us know which side of the spectrum you fall on:
Ohio State University Student’s “Black People Are Superior” Comment Leads To Viral ControversyConservative Students At University Of Houston Cite Free Speech To File Lawsuit Against Policy That Bans SlursColumbia University Professor Fired Over Tweet Calling African Model A “Freak Of Nature”
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