Even the most extroverted, confident, and social media-savvy LGBTQIA women know that dating apps can be more work than they’re worth. Sure, they make it easier to meet people, but there’s no doubt that every date is a gamble.
The dating app “Her” aims to make dating a little easier for queer women. First, the app is exclusively for LGBT-identifying women. This alone has a big impact: Users are free from the burden of sifting through hordes of straight cis men on apps like Tinder, and users already have a couple things in common—queerness and womanhood. No need for table topics here!
Another innovative aspect of “Her” is that its focus is wider than sex and love. The LGBT women who created the app emphasize that “Her” is as much about building community and friendships as it is about finding a date. This broader view takes some of the pressure off liking a stranger’s post or initiating conversation—there aren’t any expectations for where these interactions are supposed to lead.
Although complaints about the app include a frequent tendency to glitch, “Her” is revolutionary in its power to create space and community for queer women. As we all know, these spaces are few and far between—the ability to access an exclusively queer space every time we unlock our phones is pretty powerful.
However, its worth recognizing that this space isn’t available to all queer women. “Her” is only available on iOS 8 for iPhone and 4.0 and up for Android. While the app is doing good work in the queer community, its benefits are only available to queer women of a certain socioeconomic status.
Overall though, “Her” is definitely making strides in reshaping the dating app market. It opens up so many possibilities for making connections in the queer community. And the more connected we are, the more power we have!
