There are a lot of important and overdue conversations happening right now, so let us be frank.
This is us standing in solidarity with the #BlackLivesMatter movement and refusing to stay silent.
We know we have work to do.
This isn’t something that can be fixed from a social media post, a donation, or a conversation.
To change the way the world functions requires commitment to long term work. Work from white people to understand and challenge their privilege, and how they have benefited from a system that supports them whilst neglecting others.
This is not a problem for black people, this is a problem for everyone. This is not a problem in the USA, this is a problem the world over.
Badoo has always had a zero tolerance policy when it comes to racism, hatred and bigotry of any kind, but we know that this is not enough. We need to be actively anti-racist. As a UK based company with multicultural outreach, and a global community of users across 190 countries, this is an issue concerning each and every one of us.
In the here and now, we will be donating £20,000 to the Black Lives Matter foundation. But please know that this will not be the end. We will be holding ourselves accountable for improvement, and will be transparent about such.
This is not a knee jerk reaction, but an ongoing pledge that we will do what we can to bring about greater change.
To our black and POC community - we stand with you. Your frustration, your exhaustion and your grief are valid. Nobody should live in fear because of the colour of their skin.