Water Cooler

Airbnb CEO and Bay Area transit chime in on Twitter as Trump’s travel ban takes effect

Valerie Veteto Feb 2, 2017

While protests at airports against President Donald Trump’s ‘Muslim Ban,’ swept the nation, major tenants of industry also voiced their opinion. Brian Chesky, the CEO of Airbnb, immediately tweeted his personal support of refugees:

Open doors brings all of US together. Closing doors further divides US. Let’s all find ways to connect people, not separate them.

— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) January 28, 2017

Trump’s Executive Order, which was signed last Friday, temporarily bars entry of anyone from seven predominantly Muslim countries: Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Libya, Somalia and Sudan. This was issued as a means of “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” according to the administration. Those granted refugee status were also banned for 120 days.

In a series of Tweets, Chesky pledged support for those who had been impacted by the travel ban. Thousands of passengers were left stranded over the weekend, unable to enter the US and without proper accommodation.

Airbnb is providing free housing to refugees and anyone not allowed in the US. Stayed tuned for more, contact me if urgent need for housing

— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) January 29, 2017

If you’re able to host refugees in need via Airbnb, you can sign up here: https://t.co/ccI5BKW0mX https://t.co/WWTGUNemMv

— Brian Chesky (@bchesky) January 30, 2017

Headquartered in San Francisco, Airbnb has faced controversy and pushback in the past for its effect on local housing being displaced due to tourism. In April of last year, BuzzBuzzNews reported on the fact that “more than three quarters of San Francisco Airbnb listings are illegal,” according to a city report. This came after new regulatory laws went into effect in February 2015 that concerned business registration certificates for each host, liability insurance and reports of how many nights their units were rented out each quarter.

Even San Francisco’s transit agency got subtly political on Twitter in the wake of the ‘Muslim ban.’ The tweet, which was retweeted more than 3,000 times, appears to have been well-received by riders.