Tinder, racism and #S**tWhiteGuysTellMe

It seems like everyone has an online dating profile, whether it’s Tinder or OKCupid or POF.

And it also seems like sometimes guys — probably girls too — don’t quite know how to react when they see a Native name on Tinder, or see someone describe themselves as Indigenous in their profile. They have expectations of who we are, what we look like, how we act.

Jessica Deer is from Kahnawake. She used her Mohawk name on Tinder and found that racism can creep into online dating sites, too. She got a lot of questions about her name and about her identity.

“The conversation, 90 per cent of the time, goes in to questioning my identity,” she told Lisa Charleyboy on CBC Radio.

Deer started the #S**tWhiteGuysTellMe hashtag on Twitter to bring to light the ridiculous things — "So I should assume your blonde hair is fake?" and "Awesome I have a thing for Pocahontas" — guys have said to her since she got a Tinder account.

Some of it is pretty funny but it matters: there still are a lot of misperceptions and stereotypes about Indigenous identity.

Have you been on a date with someone who isn’t Indigenous, or messaged someone online, and have had to deal with these kinds of comments? Share your story with the hashtag and comment below.