Apple CEO Tim Cook Addresses George Floyd Protests In Open Letter: “We Must Do More”

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In an open letter titled “Speaking Up on Racism,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said it was vital to confront “the everyday experience of deeply rooted discrimination.”

The tech exec did not identify a specific dollar amount, but said the company is “donating to organizations including the Equal Justice Initiative, which challenge racial injustice and mass incarceration.” He also said it will continue to “bring critical resources and technology to underserved school systems.”

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Beyond any financial or material contributions, his letter called for soul-searching across the board in the wake of the Memorial Day death of George Floyd in police custody, a killing that Cook called “senseless.”

Cook said simply waiting for the crisis to pass would not be acceptable. He said it was essential to “reexamine our own views and actions in light of a pain that is deeply felt but too often ignored. Issues of human dignity will not abide standing on the sidelines. To the Black community — we see you. You matter and your lives matter.”

Simply waiting for the crisis to pass would not be acceptable, he added.

“This is a moment when many people may want nothing more than a return to normalcy, or to a status quo that is only comfortable if we avert our gaze from injustice,” Cook wrote. “As difficult as it may be to admit, that desire is itself a sign of privilege. George Floyd’s death is shocking and tragic proof that we must aim far higher than a ‘normal’ future, and build one that lives up to the highest ideals of equality and justice.”

The letter was posted to Apple’s website Thursday morning and featured prominently.

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