Social Media Watch
Rela (热拉), China's most popular lesbian dating
app, has been suddenly
shut down after mothers of LGBT children gathered to raise
awareness at Shanghai's famous marriage market. Rela's Weibo account and website are down, and the app has disappeared from the Android and Apple stores, leaving its 5 million users adrift. You can still follow Rela's public WeChat account (@theLapp), which informs users that it has "temporarily suspended service" and implores them
to await the app's return. The timing is uncanny, coming right after Beijing Kunlun Tech announced it will buy all of Grindr, the world's number one gay dating app; less than a week after marriage equality became law in Taiwan; and days before LGBT P
ride Month begins.
Read more about the shutdown and LGBT apps in China: