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Texas-Based Dating Apps Launch Funds to Help Women Affected By Abortion Ban

Both companies are run by women.

Published Sept. 5, 2021

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The dating app companies Bumble and Match, which are both based in Texas and run by women, are creating funds to help women affected by the state's new law that prohibits most abortions.

Bumble made the announcement on Twitter on Sept. 1, 2021:

The CEO of Match Group, which owns popular apps like Match, Tinder, OkCupid, and PlentyOfFish, also announced a fund to help Texas-based employees and their dependents if they are impacted by the new law, per Reuters.

"The company generally does not take political stands unless it is relevant to our business. But in this instance, I personally, as a woman in Texas, could not keep silent," Match Group CEO Shar Dubey said in an internal statement.

Bumble is based in Austin, while Match is based in Dallas.

The law took effect Sept. 1, 2021, after the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 not to block it from taking effect, even though, as NPR reports, it effectively ends Roe v. Wade for women in the state. It bans abortions after about six weeks, a time when many women may not even know they are pregnant.

The law also allows any private citizen to sue abortion providers or anyone who assists a woman in obtaining one. The person bringing the lawsuit doesn't have to have any connection to the woman seeking the abortion and may be entitled to $10,000 in damages if the person prevails in court. The law makes no exceptions for rape or incest.


Sources

Bursztynsky, Jessica. “Match CEO and Bumble Create Relief Funds for Employees Affected by Texas Abortion Law.” CNBC, 2 Sept. 2021, https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/02/match-ceo-and-bumble-create-relief-funds-for-employees-affected-by-texas-abortion-law.html.

“EXPLAINER: What to Know about the New Texas Abortion Law.” AP NEWS, 2 Sept. 2021, https://apnews.com/article/health-texas-us-supreme-court-laws-gun-politics-15b5ade8ad341cd7f9e61da10a994c43.

“Match CEO, Bumble Create Funds for Texas Staff after Strict Abortion Law.” Reuters, 2 Sept. 2021, https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/match-ceo-bumble-create-funds-texas-staff-after-strict-abortion-law-2021-09-02/.

McCammon, Sarah. “What The Texas Abortion Ban Does — And What It Means For Other States.” NPR, 1 Sept. 2021. NPR, https://www.npr.org/2021/09/01/1033202132/texas-abortion-ban-what-happens-next.

Bethania Palma is a journalist from the Los Angeles area who started her career as a daily newspaper reporter and has covered everything from crime to government to national politics. She has written for ... read more