WASHINGTON — Question:
Is Airbnb banning people from booking on their site if they plan to attend the Million MAGA March in D.C. this weekend?
Answer:
No. The online rental company confirmed to the Verify team that they are not implementing a blanket-ban of people attending the rally this weekend. Airbnb did Tweet on Nov. 11 that they canceled the reservation of at least one person because they were a part of what the company considers a "hate group."
Sources:
Airbnb - Nov. 11 Tweet
Christopher Nulty, global lead for corporate communications and public affairs at Airbnb - Nov. 12 Tweet
Process:
The Verify Team is here to stop misinformation from spreading online. The team has been keeping a close eye on what’s being posted about the Million MAGA March planned for this weekend in D.C.
Many are claiming online that Airbnb has stopped reservations for those attending the event.
"Airbnb is refusing to rent to someone who wanted to go to the MAGA Rally this weekend, ya’ll," wrote one user. "So much for using them anymore.”
Other posts are urging people to delete the app as a result.
The Verify team started by taking a look at the Airbnb Twitter account and found a post sent out on Nov. 11. The company announced they were canceling the booking for a person allegedly affiliated with the Proud Boys, who was planning to come to D.C. for the weekend.
"Anyone affiliated with hate groups has no place on Airbnb," the Tweet read. "We've identified the reservation, cancelled it, and banned the user from our platform."
The Verify team reached out to Airbnb to ask about this post. The company confirmed that there is not a blanket ban on people attending the event this weekend. The tweet was in response to a specific person.
The company outlines these decisions in their "community standards" section of their website.
"Members of dangerous organizations, including terrorist, organized criminal, and violent racist groups, are not welcome in this community," the standards read.
Christopher Nulty, global lead for corporate communications and public affairs at Airbnb, addressed this issue more directly on Twitter. When asked if the cancelation was simply because they didn’t “like his politics,” he offered a denial and reiterated company policy banning those with known hate groups from the app.