(LibertySociety.com) – American Idol winner and star of The Color Purple musical, Fantasia Barrino, publicly blasted an Airbnb host for forcing her family to leave a rental in the early morning hours following an overnight stay. Barrino posted on X, formerly Twitter, stating, “It’s evident to me this was racial profiling,” adding that they were only treated that way because of “the color” of their skin. Barrino also posted a lengthy message on Instagram to her 5.4 million followers, expressing her disappointment at the situation. She attached a photo of her son and his friends, who were invited to his birthday party at the rental.
Barrino said that she was trying to make a special day for her son after being away promoting a movie. According to Barrino, the host asked her family to leave because they were being loud while participating in outdoor birthday activities. She said that the complaint came after balloons were delivered and a gaming truck arrived. Barrino said that she did not violate the terms of the rental agreement, including the number of guests who were allowed to stay overnight. In her X post, she highlighted the amenities provided at the house, including a game room, poker table, fire pit, and jacuzzi. She also wrote that ribbons tied to a weight were indicative of previous parties held at the home.
Barrino noted that the host was able to observe their activities through Ring cameras and could not understand why they did not consider the children before asking them to leave. Her Instagram post was geared toward making decisions based on love and not race, gender, or zip code. She said that she teaches her children to see things from a perspective of love and aims to provide that experience for other children as well. Airbnb responded to the incident with its generic anti-discrimination statement and encouraged Barrino to review its nondiscrimination policy. Barrino said that they left the place as they were asked, taking care to leave the house in the condition it was when they arrived.
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