#queer-dating

#queer-dating

"Communicative, soulful and intentional," is how Kay, the founder of queer dating events Blind Match, described the experiences she offers. "Emotionally, mentally or physically drained," is how 78 per cent of 1,000 dating app users reported feeling when seeking romance online, according to a 2025 Forbes Health Survey. Tackling modern-day swipe culture is no easy feat, but Kay is determined to try. As the name suggests, the in-person matchmaking experience enables LGBTQ+ individuals to meet a potential partner, or future friend, completely blindfolded.

Before the pandemic, Zakiya Gibbons was everywhere, all the time. Whenever I saw her, she was on her way to another engagement she'd double stacked that day. She's a people person. A textbook extrovert. But she lived alone during the pandemic, and like a lot of people, all that alone time made her a little neurotic. Suddenly, going on dates started to feel draining, and she experienced a social anxiety she didn't recognize in herself.