No room for Trump: Airbnb condemns president's immigration ban

No room for Trump: Airbnb condemns president's immigration ban
Brian Chesky, one of the room-letting company's founders has offered free housing to refugees and anyone impacted by Trump's controversial crackdown on immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries
2 min read
30 January, 2017
One of Airbnb's moto's is "Belong Anywhere" [Getty]

One of the co-founders of Airbnb took to Twitter on Sunday and said that the room-letting company would offer free housing to refugees and anyone impacted by US President Donald Trump's controversial crackdown on immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries

In a series of posts Brian Chesky expressed opposition to Trump’s executive order, which has already begun to be implemented by US border officials stating that "not allowing countries or refugees into America is not right, and we must stand with those who are affected."

Chesky added that: "Open doors brings all of US together. Closing doors further divides US. Let's all find ways to connect people, not separate them."

Chesky has not previously publicly criticised Trump. However he was part of a group of executives from a number of tech companies that endorsed the presidential candidacy of Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton.  

Other tech leaders - from Google, Uber, and Netflix have all criticised Trump’s executive order as popular opposition to the ruling both in the US, and elsewhere, grows. 

Chesky is also said to have sent an email to Airbnb employees urging any worried the order could impact them to contact the company’s "Employee Experience" team, offering "unwavering support".

One of the moto’s of Airbnb - which has previously faced criticism for generating profits while shrinking local housing markets, and taking time to address user complaints of discrimination on its website - is "Belong Anywhere". 

The room-letting company has carried out initiatives working in refugee relief since 2015, including a scheme to provide free housing to relief workers in Greece, Serbia, and Macedonia, and includes a donation tool on its website for members to contribute to refugee relief.

On Sunday protests against the executive order were held at airports and public spaces in numerous cities in the US.