Analysis: Grindr’s Ban on ‘No Zionists’ in Bios, While Allowing Racist and Fatphobic Language

Grindr, the popular gay dating app, has started to block users from including the phrase “no Zionists” in their dating profiles. Trying to do so now triggers an error message stating that the terms “no Zionist” and “no Zionists” are “not allowed.” The change was initially reported by 404 Media on Thursday and later confirmed by Mashable on Saturday.

Reversal of Decision

UPDATE: Jul. 31, 2025, 1:04 p.m. PDT Grindr announced it’s reversing its decision to ban the terms “no Zionist” and “no Zionists” in bios, with a spokesperson telling Out on Tuesday that the policy was “implemented following user escalations around its potentially inflammatory nature,” but the company “recently decided to reverse this one upon review.”

While the hookup app has enforced the crackdown on the specific phrase, other offensive and exclusionary language such as “no FFA” (fats, femmes, Asians), “no Blacks,” and even “no Jews” are still permitted in user bios. These discriminatory “preferences” have faced criticism and seem to contradict Grindr’s own terms of service, which prohibit objectionable content, including language that is offensive racially or ethnically.

Inconsistent Efforts to Address Racism

Grindr has been criticized for its inconsistent efforts to address racism on its platform. In 2020, amidst the Black Lives Matter protests, the company promised to remove its controversial ethnicity filters, but the feature remained active for weeks after the announcement. The issue is not unique to Grindr, as other dating apps like Hinge also have filters related to ethnicity.

As mentioned in 404 Media’s original report, Grindr’s founder, Joel Simkhai, is Israeli and left the company in 2018 after it was acquired by a Chinese gaming firm. While this detail may provide context, it does not directly explain the platform’s sudden crackdown on anti-Zionist language. In response to the 404 Media story, the Anti-Defamation League commended Grindr for “prohibiting discrimination against Zionists” but suggested that protection should be extended to all identities.