Grindr is to remove its ethnicity filter in response to criticism of the feature amid the ongoing protests in the US following the death of George Floyd.
The US-based dating app said it would remove the filter from its next software release.
The filter is currently part of a list of “my type” preferences for premium users of the app, which enables users to filter matches depending on factors such as age, height and weight, as well as ethnicity.
However, it has long been criticised by many who claim it has been fuelling discrimination.
Widespread protests have erupted in the US and reached other parts of the world following the death of George Floyd, a black man who pleaded for air as a police officer pressed a knee into his neck in Minneapolis.
In a statement posted to the dating app’s social media channels, Grindr said it would not be “silent” or “inactive” in response to the incident.
We will not be silent. Black Lives Matter. https://t.co/K671PrwJc0 pic.twitter.com/93ninYt2u9
— Grindr (@Grindr) June 1, 2020
“We stand in solidarity with the #BlackLivesMatter movement and the hundreds of thousands of queer people of colour who log in to our app every day,” the statement said.
“We will not be silent, and we will not be inactive.
“Today we are making donations to the Marsha P. Johnson Institute and Black Lives Matter, and urge you to do the same if you can.
“We will continue to fight racism on Grindr, both through dialogue with our community and a zero-tolerance policy for racism and hate speech on our platform.
“As part of this commitment, and based on your feedback, we have decided to remove the ethnicity filter from our next release.”
Grindr’s decision comes after renewed criticism of the feature, which saw an earlier tweet showing support for protesters receive replies accusing the company of hypocrisy because of the continued presence of the ethnicity filter.
That tweet was later deleted before the company released its statement confirming the removal of the filter.
