Tim Cook meets with Rev. Jesse Jackson to discuss corporate diversity

Posted:
in General Discussion edited December 2014
Apple CEO Tim Cook sat down with civil rights activist Rev. Jesse Jackson on Monday to talk about a range of topics, including the company's ongoing initiative to create a more diverse tech industry.


Photo of Tim Cook's recent meeting with Rev. Jesse Jackson. | Source: Rev. Jesse Jackson via Twitter


Specific details of the hour-long meeting have not been disclosed, though both Apple and Jackson have gone on record as calling the discussion productive, USA Today reports.

"I am impressed with him and the conversation," Jackson said about Cook. "He has a real vision for Apple and he sees the value in inclusiveness."

In a statement sent to the publication, Apple spokeswoman Krisen Huguet said, "Apple is deeply committed to diversity within our company and the advancement of human rights around the world. We had a productive meeting with Rev. Jesse Jackson and we value his input. We look forward to working with him, our employees, customers and other stakeholders as we look for ways to do more."

Jackson is visiting San Francisco's Bay Area for a diversity in the workplace conference to be held by his Rainbow PUSH Coalition. The workshop will take place at Intel's headquarters in Santa Clara, Calif. He is also planning to join a rally outside of Apple's Cupertino headquarters being held by labor leaders to bring attention to a wage gap between corporate employees and lower level workers.

The rally is thought to be linked to a recent call for Silicon Valley security guard unionization. Last month, a local labor union spearheading an effort to unionize security guards and other laborers asked Apple for support in garnering better wages for contract workers. The company has yet to reply.

Employee diversification and wage gaps have become hot topics in tech. As part of a push to release diversification statistics, Apple in August issued a report that revealed most of its employees are white men. At the time, Jackson's Rainbow PUSH Coalitionpraised Apple for releasing the data.

Apple has since made workplace diversification a major initiative, coining the "inclusion inspires innovation" tagline used by Cook and others to promote the issue.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 76

    Keep that corporate extortion racket as far away from Apple as possible. No good can possibly come from this. Anyone remotely familiar with Jackson and his history knows these things ultimately benefit him and his cronies.

  • Reply 2 of 76

    This is utterly ludicrous. Why? 

  • Reply 3 of 76

    Jackson should stay far away from Apple.  Tim, Jackson does not represent the black population at all. He is just lining his pocket.  Please don't give a free Ipad or Iphone. 

  • Reply 4 of 76
    Tough position Apple is in. Tim is damned if he meets with Jackson (as he will have to give in to the extortion), or damned if he doesn't (as he will be decried as a "hater"). Anyone who knows Apple is aware of the lengths they go to to be "inclusive". I would agree that this is just a way for Jackson to stay in the news and line his pockets.
  • Reply 5 of 76
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SpamSandwich View Post

     

    Keep that corporate extortion racket as far away from Apple as possible. No good can possibly come from this. Anyone remotely familiar with Jackson and his history knows these things ultimately benefit him and his cronies.


     

     

    http://www.theonion.com/articles/jesse-jackson-honored-for-providing-innercity-yout,505/

     

    I think Apple can do this without his "help."

  • Reply 6 of 76
    He should have shown this biggoted race- baiter the door and told him to eff off. Jackson is a known extortionist and is not someone who cares about diversity. Pathetic that Cook is even talking with him.
  • Reply 7 of 76
    msanttimsantti Posts: 1,377member
    Jacckson, along with Sharpton, Holder and Obama are all race hustlers.

    Fine if they want to get all in arms over Ferguson or the New York deal.

    But if its something that goes the other way, they are not to be found anywhere.

    The black community really should stop paying attention to these people.
  • Reply 8 of 76

    I guess this is about how low level contractors and security guards aren't able to afford living near Silicon Valley.

     

    From San Jose Mercury News:

     

    http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_27011825/union-pushes-better-treatment-apple-security-guards

     

    "Organized labor notched an important win in the valley last week as Facebook's shuttle bus drivers, who work for Loop Transportation, voted to join the Teamsters union. Google also made waves in October by announcing that it will create an in-house force of security guards who will be eligible for the same benefits as other Googlers, ending its relationship with SIS after the transition. Kehinde hopes Apple is taking note."

     

    "Security guard Michael Johnson, who said he makes less than $20 an hour as a supervisor on another tech company's campus, says he is getting squeezed out of the Bay Area. No longer able to afford his own apartment, the 52-year-old San Jose resident rents a room from a friend and tries to help his two sons through college. He carefully plans his meals to take advantage of fast-food specials, eating at Popeyes each Tuesday, when he can get two pieces of chicken for less than $2."

  • Reply 9 of 76
    I think it's a chess move that Cook came out. He is a declared minority too now. Minorities can say no to other minorities. In the court of public opinion a gay white man saying no is less damning than a straight white man. One would be painted as completely intolerant. The other not so much.
  • Reply 10 of 76
    waltgwaltg Posts: 90member
    Is is nuts!!! That guy is the biggest worthless thing walking around! Diversity in the workplace is one thing but this ludicrous, more harm than good will come of this! this would prompt one to question his decision making....
  • Reply 11 of 76
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member

    It is very weak of Apple to meet with Jackson and his group that is up to no good.

     

    Who's Apple going to meet with next? The KKK? 

  • Reply 12 of 76
    Ugh...
  • Reply 13 of 76
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by msantti View Post



    Jacckson, along with Sharpton, Holder and Obama are all race hustlers.



    Fine if they want to get all in arms over Ferguson or the New York deal.



    But if its something that goes the other way, they are not to be found anywhere.



    The black community really should stop paying attention to these people.

     

     

    They do try to help, but it doesn't get on the news:

     

    http://www.whitehouse.gov/my-brothers-keeper

     

    Though I feel that Sharpton and Jackson are a bit more Ayn Rand when it comes to making money from race.

  • Reply 14 of 76
    buzdotsbuzdots Posts: 452member



    Jeez, now THIS is stooping to a REAL low.

    Tim should know better than to rub elbows with the likes of this worthless race-humping s.o.s.

  • Reply 15 of 76
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post

     

    This is utterly ludicrous. Why? 




    Silicon Valley in general is doing pretty poorly with attracting diverse talent.  We do well attracting people of Asian ancestry, but not so well elsewhere (and don't get me started with how poor engineering remains at attracting women).

     

    This almost certainly is leading to the Valley missing out on some great talent.  I don't recall the numbers, but there was an interesting report on NPR last week talking about the percentage of tech employees of African American ancestry working in Silicon Valley vs. the tech hub around Washington.  Silicon Valley was much lower, mostly because the eastern tech hubs have done a better job of linking up with colleges that have a strong background in attracting African Americans, and they tend to be on the east coast.

     

    In failing to attract people from those colleges, the Valley is limiting it's ability to attract the finest minds.  Silicon Valley can't survive on graduates from Stanford alone.........

     

    While I'm not sure how meeting Jessie Jackson, who's motives often seem questionable, will help things, it's good to see a CEO of Cook's standing acknowledging that both the tech community and the African American community can do a better job of helping each other out.

     

    To the rally that is going to be held, and the likely unionization of security guards, again, this is an issue that Silicon Valley needs to tackle.  The income gap between the top and the bottom is out of control, and we need to be open and honest about how to resolve that.  All of us on six figure salaries, who can afford a million dollars for a 3 bedroom family home need to acknowledge that our livelihoods are not sustainable if we don't have manual laborers to do the support jobs that we do depend on, who are able to live in the area.

     

    Ignoring this ever growing problem is going to make our livelihoods unsustainable, and again, having someone of Cooks stature play a part in attempting to resolve the problems is significantly better than civic and business leaders trying to ignore the problem and hope it will go away.

  • Reply 16 of 76
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by NotTylerDurden View Post



    I think it's a chess move that Cook came out. He is a declared minority too now. Minorities can say no to other minorities. In the court of public opinion a gay white man saying no is less damning than a straight white man. One would be painted as completely intolerant. The other not so much.

     

    I agree with you. Gay people and minorities are given much more slack in terms of what they can say and do. It's not about the content of the message, it's more about who is saying it that counts with many people.

     

    Maybe I should turn gay, and I'll also get a suntan to make me look more like a minority, and then certain people on this forum would no longer be allowed to be outraged by anything that I say.:smokey: 

  • Reply 17 of 76
    canukstormcanukstorm Posts: 2,695member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post

     

    It is very weak of Apple to meet with Jackson and his group that is up to no good.

     

    Who's Apple going to meet with next? The KKK? 


    Louis Farakhan.

  • Reply 18 of 76

    I hope Tim took a shower after meeting with that disgusting weasel. 

  • Reply 19 of 76
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member

    Martin Luther King would be shaking his head in disappointment in seeing how Jackson (and Sharpton) have completely strayed off the path and become nothing more than 15-minute fame media whores.  Those two guys together did more damage to equality than anyone else could.



    Tim Cook is not helping the situation by catering to this jacka$$.  Jackson and his lapdog Sharpton are more racists than established racists folks.



    Ask Jackson what his stance on Gil Collar:



    http://www.al.com/news/mobile/index.ssf/2014/10/collar_story.html



     

  • Reply 20 of 76
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Apple ][ View Post

     

     

    I agree with you. Gay people and minorities are given much more slack in terms of what they can say and do. It's not about the content of the message, it's more about who is saying it that counts with many people.

     

    Maybe I should turn gay, and I'll also get a suntan to make me look more like a minority, and then certain people on this forum would no longer be allowed to be outraged by anything that I say.:smokey: 




    I appreciate the sarcasm. For the record, I am a Black gay man in technology.

     

    As many people have posted their opposition to Tim Cook and Apple associating with Jesse Jackson, I am as well. Still, I see that Tim is in an awkward position. If Tim chose not meet with Jackson, no matter how untrue, there would be an avalanche of worldwide bad publicity claiming Apple was not sticking to its diversity support claims.

     

    I think we can all agree that much digital ink would be wasted to paint Apple in such a bad light. At the top of that list would be the New York Times and Wall Street Journal, followed by Fortune, Forbes and Time. Everything would be reproduced without disagreement by 99% of the Web and news stations on television and radio.

     

    I have busted my butt throughout my career to be the best that I can be at what I get paid to do and have always been and will always be uninterested in being awarded a programming job to improve diversity statistics instead of me being qualified to do a job.

     

    Jesse Jackson has always shown me he is willing to crap all over my efforts to keep his name in the news and money lining his pockets. I have written my disdain for the man on this site and topic several months ago. There is no need for me to repeat myself here.

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