The dating service OkCupid created a “pro-choice” badge for users to place in their profile.
The company — owned by Match Group, which also operates dating apps Tinder and Hinge — created the feature in reaction to the enactment of the Texas Heartbeat Act.
OkCupid explains:
We support our users’ right to choose. That’s why we ask thousands of questions so you can choose the type of person you want to match with, whether that means someone who’s looking for something long-term or short-term, or who is pro-choice or not.
It’s also why we’re excited to announce our brand-new I’m Pro-Choice badge that users who want to show their support of abortion access can add to their profile. Every user in the US who answers ‘yes’ to the question ‘‘Do you want to add the Pro-Choice badge to your profile demonstrating your support of reproductive rights?’ will get the badge, and for everyone who does, OkCupid is donating $1 to Planned Parenthood (up to $50,000).
The company reported that in comparison to last year, 18% more users have placed the term “pro-choice” in their profiles. Likewise, mentions of “Planned Parenthood supporter” in Texas profiles have more than doubled this summer compared to last.
Indeed, OkCupid revealed that only 9% of daters believe the government should “defund” Planned Parenthood. Among users in Texas, 87% of men and 95% of women answered “yes” to the question, “Are you pro-choice?”
The New York Times notes that the company has previously allowed users to add badges such as “Black Lives Matter,” “Voter,” and “I’m Vaccinated.”
Left-wing corporations and politicians have reacted strongly against the Texas Heartbeat Act — which, instead of criminalizing all abortion in the state, merely permits private citizens to file suit against anyone who facilitates the abortion of a baby past six weeks’ gestation.
John Gibson, the former CEO of video game company Tripwire Interactive, expressed his support of the law via social media: “As an entertainer I don’t get political often. Yet with so many vocal peers on the other side of this issue, I felt it was important to go on the record as a pro-life game developer.” As a result, Tripwire released a statement clarifying that Gibson’s views “do not reflect those of Tripwire Interactive as a company” and announced that he had “stepped down.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) also condemned the Texas law as an attack on “menstruating person[s].”
“I don’t know if he is familiar with a menstruating person’s body,” she said of Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX) during a CNN interview. “In fact, I do know that he’s not familiar with a female or menstruating person’s body because if he did, he would know that you don’t have six weeks.”