Bumble and Match pledge to help people affected by Texas abortion law
CNN
By Charles Riley, CNN Business
Tinder-owner Match Group and rival dating platform Bumble are creating relief funds for people affected by a Texas law that bans abortion from as early as six weeks into pregnancy.
Bumble, which is based in the state capital of Austin and led by CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd, said Wednesday that it has created a fund “supporting the reproductive rights of women and people across the gender spectrum who seek abortions in Texas.”
“Bumble is women-founded and women-led, and from day one we’ve stood up for the most vulnerable. We’ll keep fighting against regressive laws like #SB8,” it said on Twitter, referring to the state law that was signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in May and took effect this week.
Match Group is also headquartered in Texas. It owns Match.com and dating apps including Tinder, Plenty of Fish, OkCupid and Hinge. CEO Shar Dubey said she was creating a fund to ensure that employees and their dependents would be able to seek care outside of the state.
“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,” Dubey said in an internal memo reported by Reuters and other media.
“Surely everyone should see the danger of this highly punitive and unfair law that doesn’t even make an exception for victims of rape or incest. I would hate for our state to take this big step back in women’s rights,” she added.
The Dallas-based company did not immediately respond to a request for more details on the fund.
The Texas law prohibits abortion providers from conducting abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected. It would effectively outlaw at least 85% of the abortions sought in the state, according to opponents.
The law took effect Wednesday after the US Supreme Court and a federal appeals court did not rule on attempts to block it.
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