New research carried out by dating app Bumble reveals that more than half of Black people across the UK don’t see themselves represented in images of love used in mainstream online spaces. The research also revealed that three in four black poeple in the UK thinks there is a lack of relatable images and stories about dating as a black person in the UK.
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But the dating app hopes to do something about this with a new campaign that looks to amplify tales of black love, with a cast of characters including model Jourdan Dunn, presenters Clara Amfo, Olympic Boxer Nicola Adamsand model and entrepreneur Leomie Anderson.
Jourdan Dunn has shared the story of her engagement to rapper Dion Hamilton earlier this year. 'Black love is all I know because I'm Black and I'm made from love, and I am love. It's just about a community coming together and really showing off for each other and supporting each other. I look at him [Dion Hamilton] as inspiration and I have never been inspired by a man before. I didn't even think it was really possible. My mum is my biggest inspiration and my great gran and my gran but I've never had any inspiration for a man and he inspires me everyday.
'It was a Sunday - and now Sunday’s are our day. I felt like it was coming because Ribbon In The Sky was on loop and all of a sudden he [Dion Hamilton] started going into this speech about much he loves me, and how he doesn't see his life without me. Then, he goes down on one knee and whips out the ring.
'My love is legendary.'
Naomi Walkland, the head of Bumble in the UK and Ireland has shared the importance of the campaign. 'Growing up in London, I saw so little of myself reflected in images of love and relationships that I consumed. And when I did, it rarely represented the Black British experience. If this inspires just one young Black girl to feel empowered to make the first move then it is a step in the right direction.
'At Bumble, we have a role to play in how our community, particularly millennials, think about love and relationships. Through this effort to document and amplify British Black Love stories, we hope to better represent the breadth of love in the UK. '