On Tuesday, Airbnb announced that it would work with hosts in the United States and around the world to temporarily house 20,000 refugees from Afghanistan who need shelter. The company's nonprofit, Airbnb.org, plans to match refugees with prospective hosts who are willing to open their doors to those in need. Airbnb, company CEO Brian Chesky, and contributions to Airbnb.org will be used to cover the costs for housing the refugees for either short or longer-term stays, per information shared by Chesky on Twitter.
The move is certainly a generous one, at least when you compare it to what the United States government is offering. Earlier this month, the Pentagon announced a plan to accept between 20,000 to 22,000 refugees — an embarrassingly paltry number when you consider the government is well aware that there are tens of thousands of people in need of housing as they flee from Taliban control, not to mention the fact that all of this is happening because of America's long and unnecessary occupation and eventual abandonment of the region. So, sure, points to Airbnb for basically matching what the richest country on Earth, and the one responsible for the problem in the first place, has managed to muster.
