EmergencyBNB Provides Temporary Housing for Refugees and Domestic Violence Victims

Blog posted On November 02, 2016

EmergencyBNB, a not-for-profit take on popular home-sharing service Airbnb, aims to provide temporary housing for refugees and domestic violence victims seeking shelter in a time of crisis.  Founder Amr Arafa, an Egyptian immigrant living and working in Washington DC, was offering his own apartment on Airbnb, and hosted a Syrian couple awaiting an asylum hearing and also a woman escaping an abusive situation.  He decided to launch his own website designed specifically for helping others in similar situations, called EmergencyBNB.

The free service is designed to pair domestic violence victims and refugees with hosts during their time of need.  Those who seek shelter, access the website on a computer or mobile device and enter their zip code to find a local host.  The easy-to-use website opens with two options: “I have a place” or “I need a place” and users can navigate from there.

After a soft launch in August, EmergencyBNB already has 7,000 users and hosts worldwide.  In the United States, 700 hosts have listed their homes as safe places.  While the service does not yet have a standard vetting system in place, Arafa asks each guest for government documentation or a refugee passport to verify their situation or a police report or restraining order in the case of domestic violence. 

If you would like to learn more about EmergencyBNB, visit their website.

Sources: CNN, The Washington Post