Gay

OkCupid announced that it has rolled out a new feature to allow users to prominently display their pronoun preferences in their profiles. This is an important step for the industry as a whole in acknowledging and including people who identify outside of traditional binary male/ female gender roles.

OkCupid users have had the option to include pronoun preference information in their bio (or “self summaries” section), so potential dates know how they identify. This wasn’t optimal for many daters, since not every potential match takes the time to read through a profile. Making it a feature and giving it a dedicated space allows users who identify outside of traditional gender norms more inclusivity in the online dating experience.

Grindr, the leading dating app for gay and bisexual men, is preparing to list its shares on international stock exchanges. The app’s Chinese parent company, Kunlun Group, said in a stock exchange filing to the China Securities Regulatory Commission that the listing will take place overseas at an unspecified time. The timing and locations of the share sale will be determined by regulatory approval as well as capital market conditions.

In the Shenzhen stock exchange filing, Kunlun Group said that financing arrangements would be made to support Grindr’s expansion following the completion of the IPO. The company’s board said that going public would “strengthen” Grindr’s competitiveness and support future development plans for the business.

“Grindr’s listing won’t exert a huge influence on the group’s revenues and profits,” Kunlun said in the filing, according to The Independent. “Meanwhile, Grindr can have an individual and direct financing platform which can support its expansion and long-term development.”

“It’s time to play nice.”

With those five words and a cryptic Instagram post, Grindr has hinted at what appears to be a new initiative to curb discrimination amongst daters. Its name, of course, is Kindr.

Grindr has long faced criticism from users who found the app to be an unwelcoming, and sometimes dangerous, place. Many have reported experiencing racism, transphobia, and violent hate crimes on or as a result of the platform. Some have sworn it off completely in response.

With Kindr, Grindr may finally be ready to tackle the issue head on. The Instagram post features an updated logo and a series of intertwining voiceovers describing their experiences with prejudice on the app.

With the explosion of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, there has never been a more public conversation around sexual assault, abuse and consent. Gay social network Hornet is the latest company to take a stand against sexual violence, partnering with Planned Parenthood and the Los Angeles LGBT Center to support survivors and provide education for Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

“Sex education is where sexual assault prevention begins, for all people — not just LGBTs,” says Sean Howell, President of Hornet. “The public deserves this kind of information. We must work to take care of our community and will continue to provide helpful information that gives the community skills to navigate healthy relationships, sex and consent.”

As the largest global LGBT newsroom, Hornet stands to play an important role in this initiative.

It’s been a wild month for Sina Weibo. On Friday April 13, the Chinese social media network unveiled plans to delete all posts relating to gay culture as part of a three-month “cleanup” effort. A mere three days later, the company announced it would reverse the ban following an outpouring of anger from users.

Sina Weibo initially described the campaign as a removal of images, videos, text, and cartoons related to pornography, violence, and homosexuality. "This is to further ensure a clear and harmonious society and environment," the network said in its statement, as well as to comply with stricter cybersecurity laws enacted by President Xi Jinping.

But to many users, the announcement had sinister underpinnings. Tens of thousands took to the social network to express outrage at the campaign’s discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in China, an issue that persists more than two decades after the country decriminalized homosexuality.

Gay dating and social networking app Hornet ushered in 2018 in grand style, launching a not-for-profit organization and plans for an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) in the first quarter of the year.

The LGBT Foundation aims to harness the potential of technological innovations like blockchain for the good of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals around the world. Through its initiatives, the Foundation will empower the LGBT community to exert its economic influence, protect vulnerable community members, encourage greater acceptance, and drive positive social change on a global scale.

Resources from the LGBT Foundation will be allocated on an ongoing basis to actively support members of the LGBT community in instances where they are vulnerable, distressed, or suffering from repression or inequality – this could include financial assistance to support political activism as well as logistical and operational support, depending on the particular requirements.