Many times you need to get your foot in the door to even get those 5 minutes to prove yourself. Not arguing that racism is a factor here just playing the devil's advocate and pointing out that it is possible even if implausible.
Perhaps this is the strategy he was pursuing when he took on a second masters in acoustical engineering. Getting more degrees will probably not solve his problems, especially for a 55 yr old man.
Well. He's 55 yrs old and has been out of work for sometime. At that age no one expects to train you so you have to have had a great track record, be practically a guru and be bringing something to the company to get hired over a recent graduate. His race might play a part in potential employers being doubtful that he has those skills (probably a bit understandable given the number of black acoustical engineers) or not being able empathize with his situation.
How is that not relevant? I used craigslist to sell a car recently and with strangers showing up asking for solo test drives, the least I could do was ask for a valid license so I could make a copy and a cell phone number, which I verified on the spot. That or no solo test drive. True in extreme cases this would not have stopped my car getting stolen, but I cannot imagine leaving a house full of personal documents and valuables to a stranger whose sex and last name I did not even know. You can tell a lot from meeting someone in person, at least enough to raise red flags or some doubt and maybe have a neighbor check in from time to time.I think airbnb and the internet in general lull some otherwise smart, educated people into a false sense of security they wouldn't have offline but people need to use just as much commonsense online as they would in the real world.