Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think you're reading a bit too much in it. Say you hate Italians with a passion and I send you a request. You can surely tell me no, politely declining with any excuse you like. What you can't do is reply me in an offensive way, asking me for more money or anything else which strictly related to your hate. Or at least, you can but if you do that they can now ban you from the service. I was pretty surprised when I f…
I think you're interpreting it too charitably. If you're Italian and send me a request, which I refuse on the sole basis that I hate Italians, no matter how politely, I am certainly acting with bias.
I had an apartment booked in st Petersburg, had been for months. My wife, Latvian, handled communication, in Russian.
Show up. Dude is visibly shocked and upset that I'm not Russian. Proceeds to "angliski blad" and "velikaia schwinoi" me, tells us apartment is closed for renovations starting today.
In Russia this is a problem - when you get a visa you have to list your accommodation - and if you diverge you stand a half decent chance of being arrested and deported, particularly if a host reports you as a no show.
We eventually found a hotel that evening, but it's left me very wary of using airbnb - and I'm a bloody white male. I can't imagine what a dark-skinned Muslim/homosexual/not just British couple/person might face.
Huh, I still don't have that refund, now that I remember. Three months ago.