Tinder Dating App Adds New Gender Options
SAN FRANCISCO -- Tinder, the dating app that lets people scroll, swipe, match and meet up, is giving its users new gender options besides male and female.
In addition to some 40 different new auto-fill options, users can create their own customized label to describe their gender.
The new feature is available in the U.S., U.K. and Canada.
It's part of a push to allow users to express their authentic selves, a movement reflected in the Twitter hashtag #AllTypesAllSwipes.
Tinder CEO Sean Rad told Tech Crunch the company not only wants to be better for trans and gender non-conforming people, it wants "get it right," for everyone.
"About six months ago, we really realized there was a big issue with harassment toward transgender people," said Rad. "Our immediate reaction was this is unacceptable we're going to squash this. As we went on this journey, we started peeling back the orange and realized it was a complex issue."
Some users were "misusing the system to report people just for being trans," said trans advocate Andrea James in the #AllTypesAllSwipes promo video. As a result, many trans people were banned and kicked off the app.
There is still stigma associated with the notion of dating a transgender," added Nick Adams, Director of GLAAD's Transgender Media Program. They were not able to have the same experience that non-transgender users were able to have."
The company collaborated with trans activists and organizations like GLAAD to create the new options, and says this is just the fist step in its effort "to make Tinder a more inclusive community."
"We want to make sure everyone has the ability to meet someone new that can have a profound impact in their lives," said Rad.
Finally, Tinder issued an invitation to anyone who was ever reported and wrongfully removed from the app, asking them to return to the platform. Those users can now email questions@gotinder.com with a link to their Facebook file and regain access.
