CEO: Apple to donate $2 million to anti-hate groups

Credit: Drew Angerer

Credit: Drew Angerer

The CEO of Apple said his company would donate $2 million to anti-hate groups, releasing a staff memo that criticized President Donald Trump and others who claim “moral equivalence” between the white supremacists and counter-protesters last weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Tim Cook sent a memo to employees Wednesday, USA Today reported. He pledged donations to the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League. Apple is encouraging employees to donate and is matching their payments by a 2-to-1 margin through Sept. 30, USA Today reported. Cook also said that Apple is setting up a system in its iTunes software to allow donations to go directly to the SPLC.

“Like so many of you, equality is at the core of my beliefs and values,” Cook wrote. “The events of the past several days have been deeply troubling for me, and I’ve heard from many people at Apple who are saddened, outraged or confused,” Cook said in the memo, which was shared with USA Today. “What occurred in Charlottesville has no place in our country. Hate is a cancer, and left unchecked it destroys everything in its path. Its scars last generations. History has taught us this time and time again, both in the United States and countries around the world.

“I disagree with the president and others who believe that there is a moral equivalence between white supremacists and Nazis, and those who oppose them by standing up for human rights,” Cook wrote. “Equating the two runs counter to our ideals as Americans.”

About the Author