eHarmony.com Sued for Excluding Gays & Lesbians from Dating Website
California Lawsuit Could Turn into Class Action Lawsuit Against the Match-Making Giant
Members of the gay community who have tried to log on to eHarmony.com to find a soulmate were met without a proper button to click. There is no option for "men seeking men" or "women seeking women."
According to Reuters News Service, a discrimination lawsuit was filed against eHarmony.com on Thursday, May 31, at the Los Angeles Superior Court. L.A. resident Linda Carlson, the woman filing the case, claims she was denied access to membership on the dating website because she is a lesbian. Carlson wrote eHarmony about her problem, but it was not fixed, hence the pending lawsuit. While the case was filed on behalf of Carlson, Reuters reports that the lawyers who filed this suit are hoping to make it a class action lawsuit against the dating site.
According to eHarmony.com, the website has become the most trusted dating website in America, boasting about 12 million members. Clinical psychologist, Dr. Neil Clark Warren founded the dating site in 2000 and launched a new way to online match-making: a scientific approach. The website touts that 90 couples are married per day due to eHarmony.com's compatibility screening.
The website's 'About Us' page claims, "In fact, recent research presented at the American Psychological Society found that eHarmony married couples are significantly happier than couples married for a similar length of time who met by other means."
The site also mentions how the service is open to millions of people with this statement: "Millions of people of all ages, ethnicities, and religious backgrounds have used eHarmony's patented Compatibility Matching System™ to find the love of their lives."
However, the site makes no mention of being available to same-sex couples. With sentences like, "Isn't it time you experienced the joy of falling in love with someone who sees you, loves you, and accepts you for who you are? This is the kind of joy that comes from true compatibility. And true compatibility is what forms the basis for every relationship at eHarmony," it is enough to make anyone seeking romance want to look for a partner. But, members of the GLBT community are finding out quickly that the joy of falling in love cannot be found using eHarmony.com.
According the Reuters, eHarmony.com responded to the lawsuit by stating that the scientific research the company has done is based on heterosexual relationships.
"The research that eHarmony has developed, through years of research, to match couples has been based on traits and personality patterns of successful heterosexual marriages. Nothing precludes us from providing same-sex matching in the future. It's just not a service we offer now based upon the research we have conducted," eHarmony said in a statement issued to the press.
Many speculate that it is Warren's ties to the ultra-conservative Focus on the Family group and ties to evangelical Christian groups that are resulting in the exclusion of gays and lesbians from eHarmony.com.
Sources: eHarmony.com and http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070531/tc_nm/usa_eHarmony_gays_dc
Published by D. S. Ploshay
Since 2000, Donna Ploshay has contributed to alternative weeklies, newspapers, magazines and puzzle books including "The Times Leader," "The Weekender," "Games" and "Wilkes." Her expertise includes SEO, blog... View profile
Same-sex Marriage and Last NamesRegardless of same-sex marriage laws, an individual is largely free to change his or her name through the court system. So, even if a union isn't recognized by a state governme...
Same-Sex Marriage Amendment to Enter Massachusetts State House AgainMassachusetts lawmakers are set to enter a Constitutional Convention to decide whether or not to allow a proposed ban on same-sex marriage to pass on to voters.- Acceptance of Same-sex Marriage or Civil Unions; Fighting Yesterday's WarThere will come a time when laws against same-sex marriage will fall to the same rationale as those barring mixed-race marriage.
Same-Sex Marriage Ban on Hold Once AgainA proposed same-sex marriage ban in Massachusetts was not voted on today, as Senate President Therese Murray (D) adjourned the meeting in less than a minute.- Same-Sex Marriage Goes to California Supreme CourtBattle originates from San Francisco Mayor's 2004 decision to issue same-sex marriage licenses against state law.
- EHarmony Discriminates Against Gays and Lesbians
- Finding a Safe Dating Website
- Forget Online Dating, Try Free Socializing First
- Dating in the 21st Century
- Poll: Gays and Lesbians Can't Change, but Can They?
- Same Sex Marriage, the New Social Trend
- Same-Sex Marriage
- Eharmony.com is being sued by a California lesbian. She tried to address her issue with the company
- Eharmony.com has over 12 million members- all of the heterosexual
- Eharmony.com claims its research for matching is only for heterosexual couples.
31 Comments
Post a CommentEHarmoney doesn't serve atheists, either. Every atheist that I know of (and an agnostic) who used eHarmony got the "you could not be matched" message. If you aren't a conservative Christian, why use a conservative Christian dating site? Two of my friends tried out Chemistry.com and liked it a lot. I like OK Cupid which is a free dating site. Both of them have non-discrimination policies regarding race, religion, gender, and sexual orientation. Hurt eharmony in the pocketbook by boycotting them and by telling everyone you know that eHarmony practices discrimination based on sexual orientation and religion so they can boycott them, too. I think that we need to pick our battles wisely. Once universal human equality is recognized and equal marriage is a fact of life companies such as eHarmony won't float so well. They, along with quite a few others are on my "boycott and talk about" list.
I'm not gay, however I'm writing a paper on Gay marriage. This is about discrimination. As said on headline news part of CNN, they discussed how other sites that are specifically for gays, do NOT discriminate against heterosexuals, they still let you register. The Jewish dating site still lets non-jewish people join. This is discrimination, we live in an Equal Opportunity country, so why shouldn't she sue? If it opens this up then yes. It's a basic civil right, and so is marriage, but we won't get into that. It is discrimination when you are not allowed to join, take part, or any other form of doing something because of your beliefs as a person.
what was the outcome ?
Think about it: How would eHarmony go about matching gays when it has no interest in -nor knowledge of- compatibility with respect to gay relationships? A gay entrepreneur could see this as a business opportunity to develop compatibility-matching techniques for gays. It's not always discrimination people!
This is absurd. Maybe we should all run out and sue gay matchmaking sites for discriminating against us heterosexuals! lol This whole article is not about discrimination but about an opportunist seeking to make free money. Enough said.
This is absurd. Maybe we should all run out and sue matchmaking sites for discriminating against us heterosexuals! lol This whole article is not about discrimination but about an opportunist seeking to make free money. Enough said.
I guess we should say so-freaking-what when black people are made to eat in the back of a restaurant or not allowed to eat in the restaurant at all, too, Chris?
I am all for Gay Rights. My daughter is Bi. My best friend (aside from my husband) is a gay male. but this is not, and should not, be about that., Frequenting a business is not a right. It is the business owners decision who to cater to. Period. It is his damn money. I feel the same about the whole smoking issue. If I use my money to open my business then it is my decision to allow smoking or not. America free? Bullshit. There are more people in the US trying to tell everyone else how to run their business than I have ever seen in my travels...
I have to agree with Carol. If you don't like the way a company does business, by all means speak up - but don't expect them to be legally obligated to serve not-otherwise-protected groups. By the same token, what about that gay bar I read about the other day that excluded straights (and, I think, lesbians)? That's their right, too. (even though my knee-jerk reaction was irritation, I don't own the bar.)
So freakin what if it is discrimination? It's their business, let them run it like they want!!! If someone wants to keep me out of their gay singles matchmaking group because I am straight, that's their business! Gays need to stop whining...