Airbnb Listing Taken Down After Black Woman Finds Hanging Monkeys And Cotton Used As Decor
A TikTok has gained widespread attention revealing troubling racist decorations inside a rental property reportedly booked by a Black woman through Airbnb.
Erica W., known as @tasteofmelanin on TikTok, shared a video on July 28 showcasing unsettling items in a home she rented, such as monkey figurines and artificial cotton plants.
Among the disturbing decorations featured in the video was a fake cotton branch mounted on a wall, adorned with plush monkey toys hanging from it. Additionally, the video shows a basket of artificial cotton on the floor, a vase filled with cotton branches, and a large plant adorned with plush monkeys.
While the exact location of the Airbnb remains unspecified, her video also features a wooden plaque shaped like the state of Virginia, positioned on a mantle beneath a mounted deer head trophy.
Historically, cotton was a primary crop cultivated by enslaved individuals in the South during the 18th and 19th centuries. Monkeys are frequently used in racist stereotypes of Black people.
The video has garnered over two million views and over 5,000 comments since its release, with many viewers expressing their astonishment at the decor and advising Erica W. to report the Virginia property to Airbnb.
"Take pictures to send to Airbnb. This is genuinely insane," one commenter advised. "Nah, this has to be intentional," another viewer noted.
"POV: They saw who booked the room," read another comment.
In follow-up comments, Erica W. mentioned that she immediately vacated the property and that Airbnb removed the listing from its platform.
As of this writing, Airbnb has not publicly addressed the matter.
