Bizarre twist in viral Airbnb 'slave cabin' saga

Following outrage over an Airbnb listing that promoted a "slave cabin", it has come to light that a previous owner may have lied about the property's history to attract guests.

Last week, people were understandably upset when it came to light that an Airbnb listing was described as an "1830s slave cabin".

Wynton Yates first shared his thoughts on the listing on TikTok and questioned why people thought it would be okay to rent out a place where people were kept as slaves.

The Airbnb cabin, named the "Panther Burn Cottage", was separate from the mansion located at Greenville, Mississippi.

What upset Mr Yates the most were the reviews people left, with people ignoring the history of the Airbnb and remarking about how they had a wonderful stay in the cabin.

Airbnb did remove the listing and apologise for any trauma or grief caused, but now the new owner has come forward to set the record straight.

Airbnb cabin's actual history revealed

In a new video, Mr Yates shared a statement from Brad Hauser, who purchased the property just weeks ago.

In the statement, he apologised for the "decision to provide our guests a stay at 'the slave quarters' behind the 1857 antebellum home that is now a bed and breakfast".

He also apologised to African Americans whose ancestors were enslaved.

Mr Hauser claims he "strongly opposed" the previous owner marketing the building as slave quarters, but said the property was "never part of any plantation".

The owner before Mr Hauser was a man named Josh Cain, Mr Hauser said.

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The main home was once occupied by slave owners and those they enslaved, however, the original owner said the so-called "slave cabin" was actually a doctor's office.

"Why Cain attempted to mislead me, guests and the public, only he can answer," Mr Hauser wrote.

Mr Yates also took issue with someone trying to capitalise on trauma.

"It’s crazy to me that the previous owner decided “slavery” was a great selling point to attract guests!" he wrote on TikTok.

Mr Hauser said because The Belmont had contracts with Airbnb and Booking.com dropped, the mansion, which seemingly also houses guests is suffering.

He said Greenville is one of the poorest cities in the US and if The Belmont was to go under, there would be fewer tourists in the area.

Mr Yates said the whole ordeal was a "jumping off point" for conversations about the commercialisations of plantations and how "it's gross".

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