Post by High Priestess on Feb 24, 2016 16:55:45 GMT
SEe the article:
therealdeal.com/2016/02/23/airbnb-set-to-launch-nyc-grassroots-campaign-modeled-on-sf-victory/
Airbnb this week plans to launch a grassroots organizing effort in New York modeled on its successful policy-changing campaign in San Francisco.
Leading up to a ballot initiative in November, Airbnb last year mobilized its community in San Francisco – and pumped $8.5 million into its political campaign – to successfully fight back Proposition F, a proposal that would have placed restrictions on short-term rentals in the Bay Area city.
Shortly thereafter Chris Lehane, Airbnb’s newly-minted head of global policy, published a manifesto promising to replicate the grassroots campaign by supporting the creation of “100 independent Home Sharing Clubs” in just as many cities throughout this year. Here in New York, where Albany lawmakers enacted legislation in 2010 banning the kinds of short-term rentals that today make up the bulk of Airbnb’s business, the company will launch its local home-sharing club this week, and is planning a day of lobbying action in the state capital Thursday. “We’ve got campaigns up and running really in 50 places globally,” Lehane, a former aide to President Bill Clinton who the New York Times dubbed a master of the “political black arts,” told The Real Deal. “The backbone of all of those [is] the home-sharing clubs.” -
My Two Cents:
I work with Chris LEhane's team in the SF Bay Area -- in places where there are already home sharing groups, they can come in and support our organizing work by contacting hosts for us. As many know, it is difficult for hosts to contact other hosts thru the Airbnb site. Airbnb can help us by organizing meetings for us, and calling up hosts asking them to come. They also plan to create some sort of meetings bulletin board on the Airbnb website where we can post events.---- not yet sure how that is supposed to look. It won't be a forum but will be something of an event bulletin board, from what I am told. On March 3 we will have a meeting about it to find out more.