The image was taken by the photographer, Nikolas Kokovlis/Nur Photo.
The way in which guest profiles are displayed in the app will be changed for Oregon residents. After they confirm that guest's booking request, potential guests will see their initials, rather than their full name. January 31st is when the change will be fully implemented.
The change aims to prevent hosts from knowing a guest's race, by stopping them from gleaning a guest's race from their name. A study found that guests with names that sounded black were less likely to have their bookings confirmed.
The announcement is related to a voluntary settlement agreement that was reached with three Portland-area women. The platform allowed hosts to discriminate against Black users by requiring guests to attach names and photographs to their profiles.
The way in which profile names are displayed to hosts will be reviewed and updated after the settlement.
The company has supported racial justice in the past. It now requires users to agree to a community commitment. Project Lighthouse was launched in the summer of 2020 to uncover and research discrimination on its platform. Prior to the launch of that program, the company says it did not have a way to measure larger trends and patterns related to discrimination.
Host can require profile photos in order to book their properties, but guests are not required to provide them. The platform has kept guests' photographs out of hosts' hands before they make a booking. The change to combat discrimination has caused some users of the platform to worry that it could put marginalized guests in dangerous situations. One user lamented in the company's community center that he would rather be declined for a reservation than be beaten or killed.
Why is it limited to Oregon if the company expects a strategy to reduce discrimination? Liz DeBold Fusco did not directly address whether this feature will expand in the future. Fusco pointed to a statement in the announcement post that said, "As part of our ongoing work, we will take any learnings from this process and use them to inform future efforts to fight bias." The company said it plans to work with hosts and civil rights leaders to make the community more inclusive.
