Airbnb has announced that rental hosts in Oregon will no longer be able to see guests' names before approving bookings, in a move aimed at tackling racial discrimination. The policy, which takes effect on 31 January, follows a lawsuit in which three Black women alleged that the platform's use of names and photographs enabled discrimination, violating state public accommodation laws.
The lawsuit was settled in 2019, and the new measure will see hosts only shown a guest's initials until the booking is confirmed, after which the full name becomes visible. The update will be in place for at least two years. Airbnb said it would take learnings from the process to inform future efforts to fight bias.
Complaints about discrimination on Airbnb are not new. The hashtag #AirbnbWhileBlack circulated in 2015 and 2016, highlighting racism experienced by Black users. A 2016 Harvard Business School study found that requests from guests with distinctively African American names were roughly 16% less likely to be accepted than identical guests with white names.
Advocates have welcomed the Oregon policy change as a good start, but caution that it is not the end of racism on the platform. Johnny Mathias of the racial justice organisation Color of Change said companies should measure outcomes and be transparent with findings to ensure changes are meaningful. He added that the effectiveness of the policy would only be known if research is conducted.
Airbnb has resisted removing names and photos entirely, citing community benefits, but has taken other steps, including hiding profile photos until after booking acceptance and requiring all users to agree to a non-discrimination commitment. In 2020, it launched Project Lighthouse to measure bias on its platform.
