Trump’s executive order, especially the ban on immigrants from these 7 countries (Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia ), including those with a valid visa, has sparked reactions from all across Silicon Valley, which relies on talent from across the world. Google, Apple, SpaceX’s Elon Musk, Uber, Lyft, Netflix, Microsoft, and all the major companies from tech world have reacted to this order.
Facebook C.E.O Mark Zuckerberg
He wrote, we need to keep this country safe, but we should do that by focusing on people who actually pose a threat.
Microsoft C.E.O Satya Nadella
The C.E.O of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, also an immigrant, said his company is committed to helping the 76 employees impacted by the ban. The founders of the ride-hailing service Lyft, which has many immigrant drivers, will donate $1 million to the ACLU. Even immigrant workers not directly covered by the ban say they feel afraid.
Google’s Sundar Pichai
Google C.E.O Sundar Pichai in an internal memo told employees, “It’s painful to see the personal cost of this executive order on our colleagues…We’ve always made our view on immigration issues known publicly and will continue to do so.”
Sundar Pichai also retweeted an article from Wall Street Journal on how the order has impacted the life of one Google employee. In his tweet he wrote, “For generations, this country has been home to immigrants like Sanaz. Her story is playing out all over the country. Google is with you.”
Google co-founder Sergey Brin
Interestingly, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, also turned up at the protests at San Francisco International Airport. However, he didn’t give a comment saying he was attending in personal capacity. But in one quote to Forbes, Brin said he was at the protest because he too was a refugee. His family fled from Soviet Union to United States in the 1970s.
Apple C.E.O Tim Cook
Late Apple founder Steve Jobs’ father was a Syrian immigrant to the US, and current CEO Tim Cook has also criticised the order in a memo to employees, pointing out the company wouldn’t even exist today without immigration.
According to a post on Recode, Cook wrote in an email to his staff, “Apple would not exist without immigration, let alone thrive and innovate the way we do…I’ve heard from many of you who are deeply concerned about the executive order issued yesterday restricting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. I share your concerns. It is not a policy we support.”
He also quoted Dr Martin Luther King in the note to employees and said, ‘We may have all come on different ships, but we are in the same boat now.’
He said Apple has reached out to the White House to explain the negative effect on their coworkers and company.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick
On its part, Travis Kalanick has said they will compensate drivers impacted by the ban pro bono for next 3 months.
The company’s statement reads, “Our People Ops team has already reached out to the dozen or so employees who we know are affected: for example, those who live and work in the US, are legal residents but not naturalized citizens will not be able to get back into the country if they are traveling outside of the US now or anytime in the next 90 days. Anyone who believes that this order could impact them should contact our immigration team immediately.”
Uber C.E.O has said they will compensate drivers impacted by the ban pro bono for next 3 months.
The statement adds the company is in the process of reaching out to the affected drivers in order to support their families, and reduce the financial impact.
However, Uber C.E.O Travis Kalanick is also one of those along with Elon Musk who will advising Trump’s economic advisory group, which has sparked criticism.
He ended his statement saying, “I understand that many people internally and externally may not agree with that decision, and that’s OK. It’s the magic of living in America that people are free to disagree.”
Lyft C.E.O Logan Green
Lyf co-founder and C.E.O Logan Green wrote on Twitter, “Lyft has worked hard to create an inclusive, diverse and conscientious community where all our drivers and passengers feel welcome. Trump’s immigration ban is antithetical to both Lyft’s and our nation’s core values.”
Lyft’s blogpost reads, “This weekend, Trump closed the country’s borders to refugees, immigrants, and even documented residents from around the world based on their country of origin. Banning people of a particular faith or creed, race or identity, sexuality or ethnicity, from entering the US is antithetical to both Lyft’s and our nation’s core values. We stand firmly against these actions, and will not be silent on issues that threaten the values of our community.”
The company has also announced $1 million donation over the next four years to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). ACLU has already challenged Trump’s immigration ban, and raised over $10 million in the last couple of days.
“Trump’s actions are hurting Netflix employees around the world,” wrote Netflix CEO Reed Hastings.
Netflix C.E.O Reed Hastings
Netflix C.E.O Reed Hastings was not afraid to speak his mind against President Trump’s policy and called it ‘un-American’.
His full post on Facebook reads, “Trump’s actions are hurting Netflix employees around the world, and are so un-American it pains us all. Worse, these actions will make America less safe (through hatred and loss of allies) rather than more safe. A very sad week, and more to come with the lives of over 600,000 Dreamers here in a America under imminent threat. It is time to link arms together to protect American values of freedom and opportunity.”
Twitter’s Jack Dorsey
Twitter also issued a statement on the executive order. The company’s official handle tweeted, “Twitter is built by immigrants of all religions. We stand for and with them, always.”
C.E.O Jack Dorsey tweeted saying, “The Executive Order’s humanitarian and economic impact is real and upsetting. We benefit from what refugees and immigrants bring to the US.” He said the executive order goes against their principles, and has been retweeting articles critical of order, calling it wrong.
Box
Online file sharing company Box’s C.E.O Aaron Levie has been sharply critical of the order. He wrote on Twitter, “On every level -moral, humanitarian, economic, logical, etc.- this ban is wrong and is completely antithetical to the principles of America.”
Amazon
Finally, Amazon has also issued a private email to employees, asking those who are residents of the seven banned countries to not travel outside the US. The email obtained by The Verge says, “Amazon has been committed to equal rights, tolerance and diversity — and we always will be. As we’ve grown the company, we’ve worked hard to attract talented people from all over the world, and we believe this is one of the things that makes Amazon great — a diverse workforce helps us build better products for customers.”
Amazon has asked affected employees even with valid visa, but travelling abroad to contact its legal team.
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