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You are here: Home / Blogs / THINKING LATINA with SARA INÉS CALDERÓN 1. 04. 15 “TINDER & RACIAL HIERARCHY”

THINKING LATINA with SARA INÉS CALDERÓN 1. 04. 15 “TINDER & RACIAL HIERARCHY”

January 4, 2015 by Breht Burri

HOW TINDER HIGHLIGHTS AUSTIN’S RACIAL HIERARCHY

Tinder2

Tinder Dating App

Dating seems to suck in general. No matter where I live or who I talk to, there’s always something: in LA everyone is self-centered, in Austin everyone is too busy, it’s hard to find people with no kids, it’s hard to find people you can talk to about anything but TV, etc.

Recently, though, I had a conversation with a handsome young friend of mine who outlined pretty blatantly what Austin’s dating world is like if you don’t happen to be a tall, white dude. My friend is an Asian man and this is a paraphrase of what he told me:

“Dating is hard. With Tinder, I dunno, it’s like as an Asian man you’re at the bottom of the list. First there’s white guys, then Hispanic guys, then black guys, then Asian guys.”

Night-club-public-domain_200

How is meeting at a bar different from Tinder?

Mind you my friend is not a blogger or a social critic — he’s just a dude trying to get a date — but I thought his comments were particularly insightful and revealing of a place that I love and would like to see grow into its potential. I have heard or seen these preferences play out in bars and parties myself, but the “Tinder effect” struck me as particularly harsh.

Having been doing the dating thing myself here for a few months, I will admit that it’s hard out there for anyone, really, but can you imagine if through no fault of your own people were already inclined to not pursue you or “your type”? That would suck more, I think.

And it’s not that I think it’s racist to date people like yourself exclusively — I’ve written before about how I don’t think my preference for Latino men is racist. But a growing and increasingly diverse city with no or very little mixing? The “I don’t see race” attitude is really just a way of skipping over something that’s uncomfortable without understanding why. (Science: Most whites don’t have non-white friends, discussing race can help non-whites achieve more in the classroom, millennials think ignoring race is the same as dissolving racism).

Stereotypes exist. I just saw these caricatures of Chinese and Mexican people on candy at the HEB by my house last week. Someone on Facebook said they were no big deal, but the truth is I’ve never met a Chinese person with no actual eyes, I did recently meet a Chinese man with a heavy heart, though, and it really brought home how dehumanizing and other-ing stereotypical attitudes and beliefs can be.

Since I’ve been in town I’ve been on dates with Latinos and Asians, thought I’ve fended off creepsters from a variety of backgrounds, and I don’t know what the answer is. I grew up with an immigrant-rich community in LA where people from diverse backgrounds inter-marry all the time: Salvadorans married Philippinos, “blaxicans” are a thing, whites dated Vietnamese folks, and it just seemed normal to me.

I don’t know what the solution is, but I think it’s part of what I’ve been harping about on this blog since I started it: Texas, you’re not the way you used to be and you need to adjust accordingly. If you don’t, not only will you be acting like a douche, but you will be hurting yourself because change is already here, and you’re going to look like an idiot pitchin’ a fit by the time you realize it.

_______________________________________________________

Sara-Calderon-Texas_200Copyright 2014 by Sara Inés Calderón. For more articles by Sara, visit her

website: http://todotexas.wordpress.com/

Filed Under: Blogs, Sara Ines Calderon Tagged With: Latino dating, Sara Ines Calderon, Thinking Latina, Thinking Latina with Sara Ines Calderon, Tinder on-line dating

BURUNDANGA BORICUA DEL ZOCOTROCO 5.23.25 – EMINENT DANGER

May 23, 2025 By wpengine

In 2012, in Puerto Rico there were 13,000 farms; in the recent agricultural census, between 8 and 10,000 farms are recorded; a substantial decrease in the figure reported for 2012. At present, the agricultural sector of the Puerto Rican economy reports approximately 0.62% of the gross domestic product, which produces 15% of the food consumed […]

BURUNDANGA BORICUA DEL ZOCOTROCO 5.23.25 MORE ON THE NEED TO GROW

May 23, 2025 By wpengine

The title of the documentary, The Need to Grow by Rob Herring and Ryan Wirick,  is suggestive. Its abstract character is enough to apply in a general and also in a particular way. The Need to Grow applies to both the personal and to so many individuals. At the moment, the need for growth in […]

BURUNDANGA DEL ZOCOTROCO 5.16.25 PELIGRO INMINENTE

May 15, 2025 By wpengine

Peligro Inminente En 2012, en Puerto Rico habían 13 mil granjas; en el censo agrícola reciénte se registran entre 8 y 10 mil granjas; una disminución sustantiva de la cifra reportada para 2012. Al presente, el sector agrícola de la economía puertorriqueña reporta aproximadamente 0.62% del producto bruto interno, que produce el 15% de la […]

RICARDO ROMO’S TEJANO REPORT 5.23.25 MAYA BLUE EXHIBIT

May 23, 2025 By wpengine

Maya Blue Exhibit Incorporates the Artwork of Latino/a Artists A new exhibit, Maya Blue: Ancient Color, New Visions, at the San Antonio Museum of Art [SAMA], brings together for the first time pre-Columbian crafted clay figures, the art of Mexican modernist Carlos Mérida, and works by contemporary Latino/a artists Rolando Briseño, Clarissa Tossin, and Sandy […]

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