Race has become an hot button issue in today’s current political climate. With racially charged hate crimes on the rise, we decided to interview some locals on their take. “Everyone is unique and we need to celebrate that” says Dylan Smith, a cis white gay male living in Astoria who’s Grindr profile reads ‘No Asians’. “I believe that we should welcome everyone to the table regardless of background. It’s our differences that really bring us together”, he said just days after blocking a man on Grindr after sending a face picture revealing his Asian background. During the interview Dylan made it a point to say several times that he embraces people from all backgrounds despite telling an American born Japanese man “I’m sure you’re great, I’m just not into Asian guys” hours earlier. Closing out our interview Dylan said, “I think what America needs right now is to have a serious and open dialogue about race to really get people to be more inclusive” as he ignored Grindr messages from another man calling him a racist.