In the wake of the Parkland, Florida school shooting, several private companies have ended sales of semi-automatic rifles, raised the gun-buying age to 21 and, most recently, agreed to eliminate profile pictures that feature guns.
The latest measure is being rolled out by dating app Bumble, which announced it would take steps to help curb gun violence by limiting depictions of the weapons online.
“As mass shootings continue to devastate communities across the country, it’s time to state unequivocally that gun violence is not in line with our values, nor do these weapons belong on Bumble,” the company said in a statement.
More than 5,000 moderators will scour the app looking at both new and existing pictures uploaded by its nearly 30 million users to remove content with guns, TechCrunch reports. The company noted an exception for military and law enforcement officials in uniform. Bumble will also not censor photos from users’ Instagram accounts, which can be included in their Bumble profiles.
Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd told TechCrunch the move is meant to help put an end to the normalization of gun violence.
We were founded with safety, respect and kindness in mind. As mass shootings continue to devastate communities across the country, it’s time to state unequivocally that gun violence is not in line with our values, nor do these weapons belong on Bumble. Https://t.co/fC4rPlGJ8y pic.twitter.com/Qmy7zLatRP
— Bumble (@bumble) March 5, 2018
Bumble is also making a $100,000 donation to March For Our Lives, a national rally on March 24 organized by the Parkland shooting survivors demanding increased gun control and school safety measures.
