Perry Street Software Removes Ethnicity Filters From SCRUFF and Jack’d

Perry Street Software has become the latest company to remove ethnicity filters from its online dating products SCRUFF and Jack’d.

The move was made to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, which has sparked protests across the US and around the rest of the world.

A spokesperson said in a statement on Twitter: “As this week marks the beginning of Pride month, we remind our community that the origins of this celebration, the historic Stonewall Riots of 1969, were a response to police brutality.

“It is because of these riots that LGBTQ+ Americans enjoy many of the rights we have today. Many of this movement’s most outspoken leaders were Black, brown and trans people who fought for their community’s civil rights at large.”

The company is also making donations to Color of Change and the Marsha P. Johnson Institute, and is sharing other relevant links so followers can do the same.

SCRUFF and Jack’s had already stopped ethnicity being a default display option on profiles. It’s now hoped that getting rid of the filters will go some way to combating sexual racism, a prominent issue in the LGBTQ dating community.

Competitor Grindr has also promised to remove the filter as part of its next update. However, some critics have labelled the move as just a “meaningless gesture”.

Taylor Henderson from Pride.com wrote in response: “Let’s be honest, removing the ethnicity filter is in no way fighting racism. It’s doing the bare minimum in disallowing people to openly discriminate.”

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