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122 people “impacted” by President Trump's recent travel and refugee ban have found free housing around the world though Airbnb, the company announced on Monday. In addition, 5,300 people signed up to open their homes to these displaced people free of charge. Most of them had not been Airbnb hosts before, according to the company.
The numbers come a little over two weeks after CEO Brian Chesky tweeted that Airbnb would offer housing to refugees and detainees, to widespread praise and media coverage. The company also ran a Super Bowl ad proclaiming “The world is more beautiful when we all belong. #WeAccept.”
Among those 122 Airbnb guests are Yemeni refugee reportedly left without housing in Denver, and a displaced Yemeni family who found housing in El Sobrante, a San Francisco Bay Area suburb.
Airbnb has made free places to stay available to those in crisis since 2013. Currently, hosts around the world can sign up to volunteer their homes, and Airbnb connects them with displaced people as needed. Most recently, it created a page for those affected by the Oroville, CA evacuation due to flooding risks. So far, only one host has signed up.
In January, BuzzFeed News reported that “Airbnb says it has provided 'over 3,000 nights' of free housing to relief workers and donated $1 million to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The company also invites hosts to 'offer warm meals/ to refugee families, an initiative it plans to expand in 2017.”
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