Couple says hotel owner turned them away 'because he does not accept dark-skinned guests'
The incident reportedly took place in the spa town of Margherita di Savoia
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Your support makes all the difference.A couple have allegedly been turned away from a hotel in southern Italy for having "dark skin".
Cristobal Rojas, an Italian citizen of Cuban descent, attempted to check into his beach hotel in the town of Margherita di Savoia, Puglia, with his wife Josephine.
The couple live in Milan but were visiting Puglia for the Italian mid-August holiday of Ferragosto. They had visited the town several times before and were shocked by the reaction of the owner.
Speaking to Italian newspaper Repubblica, Rojas said: "When the owner saw us, he said we had to leave because he does not accept dark-skinned guests.
"We did not expect it. We have always felt welcome here in Puglia.”
When contacted by Repubblica the hotel confirmed they had asked the couple to leave, although they did not give a reason.
The incident comes after a summer where reports of discrimination in Italy have been rife. Last week an Italian student, born in Italy to Ghanaian parents, was prevented from participating in a music festival in Verona as she was “not Italian enough.”
In July a guesthouse in Calabria turned away a gay couple who had booked a room saying that they do not “accept gays and animals”. The Catholic owners told the couple that they believe in “traditional families”.
And last week a young gay couple were told to stop hugging by a pool guard in Campania. Although heterosexual couples were also hugging the guard singled out the pair and asked them to behave in a “more composed” way.
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