Apple CEO Tim Cook is among the
business leaders criticizing President Donald Trump's response to
events over the weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Cook, who came out gay in 2014, made
his comments in an email to Apple employees late Wednesday.
“What occurred in Charlottesville has
no place in our country,” Cook wrote, according to BuzzFeed
News. “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.”
During a news conference from New York
on Tuesday, Trump described some of the people protesting the removal
of a Confederate statue in Charlottesville – which grabbed
headlines after a woman died and dozens were injured when an Ohio man
drove his car into counterprotesters – as “very fine” and
blamed “many sides” for the violence.
Dozens of business leaders took issue
with Trump's position, forcing him to disband two business advisory
councils.
“We must not witness or permit such
hate and bigotry in our country, and we must be unequivocal about
it,” Cook added. “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.
Equating the two runs counter to our ideals as Americans.”
Cook also announced that Apple would be
donating $1 million each to the Anti-Defamation League and the
Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), organization that track hate
groups, including groups opposed to LGBT rights. Apple is also
encouraging employees to donate to human rights groups with a
“two-for-one” match through the end of September.