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A new billboard has popped up in West Valley City that's turning a lot of heads.
The sign on S.R. 201 near 6300 W. advertises a new dating site called WhereWhitePeopleMeet.com.
According to the website, it's a dating service based in North Salt Lake.
"People ask all the time 'Why White People Meet'? I always say, why not?" wrote someone identified as the site's founder. "Just about every other race, religion and walk of life have dating websites so why not Where White People Meet?"
Clearly, the name alone is bound to be controversial.
"I'm having trouble with the words right now," said Brian Ballenger as he looked at the billboard for the first time. "I'm a little bit stunned that something like that would even be allowed to get up there in the first place."
Down the road at a gas station, opinions were mixed.
"If that's the way they want to roll, I guess that's the way they roll," said Victor Padilla with a laugh.
"That's stupid!" said Malory Graham when 2News showed her a picture of the billboard. "You have being white in common?"
The creator of the website declined an interview Thursday to discuss the dating agency and the billboard. But the website's blog touched on the concerns of some who think the name is out of bounds.
"Our intentions in creating this dating website were never meant to be racist or biased in any way," the founder wrote. "In fact, my personal views are those of tolerance, love, acceptance and understanding."
Ballenger is skeptical.
"To me it has a negative overtone," he said.
This is not the only site catering to a specific ethnic group. BlackPeopleMeet.com touts itself as "the largest black dating site for black singles founded in the U.S."
It appears the Utah site was launched earlier this year, although it's unclear what day the billboard in West Valley went up.
There were 26 members registered on the website as of Thursday evening.
A new billboard has popped up in West Valley City that's turning a lot of heads.
The sign on S.R. 201 near 6300 W. advertises a new dating site called WhereWhitePeopleMeet.com.
According to the website, it's a dating service based in North Salt Lake.
"People ask all the time 'Why White People Meet'? I always say, why not?" wrote someone identified as the site's founder. "Just about every other race, religion and walk of life have dating websites so why not Where White People Meet?"
Clearly, the name alone is bound to be controversial.
"I'm having trouble with the words right now," said Brian Ballenger as he looked at the billboard for the first time. "I'm a little bit stunned that something like that would even be allowed to get up there in the first place."
Down the road at a gas station, opinions were mixed.
"If that's the way they want to roll, I guess that's the way they roll," said Victor Padilla with a laugh.
"That's stupid!" said Malory Graham when 2News showed her a picture of the billboard. "You have being white in common?"
The creator of the website declined an interview Thursday to discuss the dating agency and the billboard. But the website's blog touched on the concerns of some who think the name is out of bounds.
"Our intentions in creating this dating website were never meant to be racist or biased in any way," the founder wrote. "In fact, my personal views are those of tolerance, love, acceptance and understanding."
Ballenger is skeptical.
"To me it has a negative overtone," he said.
This is not the only site catering to a specific ethnic group. BlackPeopleMeet.com touts itself as "the largest black dating site for black singles founded in the U.S."
It appears the Utah site was launched earlier this year, although it's unclear what day the billboard in West Valley went up.
There were 26 members registered on the website as of Thursday evening.
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