Apple environment VP Lisa Jackson to speak at Rainbow PUSH Coalition summit

Posted:
in General Discussion edited April 2015
The head of Apple's Environmental Initiatives division, Lisa Jackson, will be delivering one of the keynote speeches at May's PUSHTech2020 Summit, hosted by the non-profit Rainbow PUSH Coalition founded by the Rev. Jesse Jackson.




In an announcement, the Coalition did not say what Lisa Jackson's topic will be. The summit itself is intended to explore and promote racial diversity in the high-tech industry, and is part of a program called the Silicon Valley Digital Connections Initiative that the organization relaunched in March 2014. The goal is to get more minorities involved at all levels of employment, as well as encourage businesses to use minority-owned firms and/or invest in minority startups.

Other executives presenting at the event -- scheduled for May 6 in San Francisco -- will include Intel CEO Brian Krzanich and Paynearme CEO Danny Shader.

Apple has a complex relationship with the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. In August, Rev. Jackson lauded Apple for disclosing workforce diversity data and admitting it still has work to do bring a better proportion of black, Latino, and/or female workers on board. In December, though, the Coalition partnered with United Service Workers West to protest the treatment of contract staff working at Apple and other Bay Area corporations.

The two groups charged that contractors were being underpaid relative to the Bay Area's high cost of living. In response, Apple said it would start hiring full-time security staff, at least granting those people access to benefits they were previously denied under the contractor label.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    zoetmbzoetmb Posts: 2,654member
    And before all the nastiness begins, let me remind people that Lisa P. Jackson is not related to Jesse Jackson. She was the administrator of the EPA before joining Apple and has a Master of Science degree from Princeton.
  • Reply 2 of 16
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    In Tim Cook's Apple you gotta pay lip service to Jesse Jackson.
  • Reply 3 of 16

    The real mistake here is engaging with Rainbow PUSH. Can we quit burning calories to keep charlatan/extortionist Jesse Jackson relevant please?

  • Reply 4 of 16
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    Ack!
  • Reply 5 of 16
    msanttimsantti Posts: 1,377member
    Ah yes, Jesse Jackson the race hustler.
  • Reply 6 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zoetmb View Post



    And before all the nastiness begins, let me remind people that Lisa P. Jackson is not related to Jesse Jackson. She was the administrator of the EPA before joining Apple and has a Master of Science degree from Princeton.



    Honestly the fact that she was involved with the EPA and went to Princeton is worse than a possible relation to Jesse Jackson. You can't choose your relatives, after all. <img class=" src="http://forums-files.appleinsider.com/images/smilies//lol.gif" />

  • Reply 7 of 16
    zoetmbzoetmb Posts: 2,654member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by TheWhiteFalcon View Post

     



    Honestly the fact that she was involved with the EPA and went to Princeton is worse than a possible relation to Jesse Jackson. You can't choose your relatives, after all. <img class=" src="http://forums-files.appleinsider.com/images/smilies//lol.gif" />




    You're right.   They should have hired someone who graduated Podunk Community College and they definitely shouldn't have hired someone who worked at the EPA for a position related to the environment.    And Princeton has such a terrible reputation (along with Harvard, Yale, etc.)    Apple should hire you as head of HR.  

  • Reply 8 of 16
    conrailconrail Posts: 489member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zoetmb View Post

     



    You're right.   They should have hired someone who graduated Podunk Community College and they definitely shouldn't have hired someone who worked at the EPA for a position related to the environment.    And Princeton has such a terrible reputation (along with Harvard, Yale, etc.)    Apple should hire you as head of HR.  


    Apple should only hire graduates from Bob Jones University and Liberty University.  Additionally, they should only speak at CPAC and possibly the Annual Sarah Palin "Lipstick on a Pig" BBQ Roast and Gun Bash in Treestump, Alaska.

  • Reply 9 of 16
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    The issue here is Tim is pandering to Jesse Jackson and his organization. No good will come of it.
  • Reply 10 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by zoetmb View Post

     



    You're right.   They should have hired someone who graduated Podunk Community College and they definitely shouldn't have hired someone who worked at the EPA for a position related to the environment.    And Princeton has such a terrible reputation (along with Harvard, Yale, etc.)    Apple should hire you as head of HR.  




    The EPA is also a politicized organization which has, like much of the government alphabet soup, increasingly been overzealous in controlling the lives of the people they're supposed to be working for.

     

    You also don't know much about Apple, clearly; they're not Google who only hires from Ivy Leagues, Apple's more concerned with talent and fit than whether your piece of paper cost $5,000 or $50,000.

  • Reply 11 of 16
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post



    In Tim Cook's Apple you gotta pay lip service to Jesse Jackson.

     

    Oh, do shut up. Im getting sick and tired of the "In Tim Cook's Apple" horse-shit peddled by people like you and others, as if the guy is some sort of extremist. Make a modicum of effort to be tolerant of other people's views without needing to brand and deride them because they don't share whatever discriminatory/bigoted tendencies you might share. It's also sad how easily you became an enthusiastic cheerleader for Carly Fiorina. 

  • Reply 12 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Slurpy View Post

     

     

    Oh, do shut up. 




    Naah, go easy. A lot of Rogifan's stuff seems more snarky than serious (could be wrong). I highly doubt she actually thinks people are required to have a picture of Jesse and Tim in their cubicles, surrounded by candles, a Jobs bobblehead, and a copy of Autobiography of a Yogi.

  • Reply 13 of 16
    slurpyslurpy Posts: 5,382member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by TheWhiteFalcon View Post

     



    Naah, go easy. A lot of Rogifan's stuff seems more snarky than serious (could be wrong). I highly doubt she actually thinks people are required to have a picture of Jesse and Tim in their cubicles, surrounded by candles, a Jobs bobblehead, and a copy of Autobiography of a Yogi.


     

    No, you're wrong. When it comes to this stuff (any kind of anti discrimination, environmentalism, liberalism, etc) Rogifan is never snarky, she(?) gets insanely passionate, sides with Apple's enemies, and vehemently attacks Cook at every opportunity. 

  • Reply 14 of 16
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member

    Naah, go easy. A lot of Rogifan's stuff seems more snarky than serious (could be wrong). I highly doubt she actually thinks people are required to have a picture of Jesse and Tim in their cubicles, surrounded by candles, a Jobs bobblehead, and a copy of Autobiography of a Yogi.

    Yeah it's snarky but true too. Steve Jobs wouldn't be wasting his time with a clown like Jesse Jackson. There's plenty Apple can do with regards to diversity in tech without pandering to Jesse Jackson.
  • Reply 15 of 16
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post





    Yeah it's snarky but true too. Steve Jobs wouldn't be wasting his time with a clown like Jesse Jackson. There's plenty Apple can do with regards to diversity in tech without pandering to Jesse Jackson.



    Very true. I still think this is going to end badly either way.

  • Reply 16 of 16

    This seems to be a rare misstep for Apple. Although this is relatively minor, I hope it doesn't become a pattern.

     

    Here's my rant:

     

    I appreciate that Apple is advocating for improving social welfare (particularly in leading by example, where true moral authority comes from), but they seem to be getting a bit sloppy. Apple has always seemed to me to have a great balance between idealism and pragmatism.* The problem with being too ideological, as it appears Apple is in danger of becoming, is that you get lost in the abstraction, and intention starts to take precedence over substance.* While Apple and rainbow push have the same intention (stop discrimination), the two organizations are vastly different; one being an amazing company with bulletproof integrity, the other being an organization that is known for extortionism and racial instigation. IMO, any alignment with rainbow push will inherently lack substance, and only diminish Apple's integrity, without meaningfully furthering the cause of ending discrimination.

     

    *I was kind of excited when Tim started being more proactive in promoting social responsibility because Apple is one of the few institutions I would trust to do so effectively (unlike the democrats who fecklessly throw money at issues to pander to voters as the 'good guys', or the republicans who refuse to support appropriate programs due to their insular perspective and simplistic focus on individualism).

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