Protests swept the nation over the weekend in opposition to President Trump’s executive order preventing refugees and others from predominantly Muslim countries from entering the US.
Activists took to the streets and rallied at airports in major cities to protest the order, which many viewed as discriminatory and unconstitutional. Politicians on both sides of the aisle joined the opposition.
CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin said Monday that some CEOs he had spoken to were avoiding speaking out against the ban because they are “scared out of their minds about being attacked [by Trump] … and what that’s going to do for their business.”
But many execs are speaking out.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin, who came to the US as a child to escape religious persecution, was seen at a protest at San Francisco International Airport on Saturday.
"I'm here because I'm a refugee," he told Forbes.
Tech executives have been the most outspoken against the ban so far. But by Monday, other corporate leaders in finance and health care had joined in opposition, issuing statements to employees and customers.
- Portia Crowe, Alex Heath, Lydia Ramsey, Madeline Stone, and Cadie Thompson contributed reporting.
Mark Fields, CEO of Ford
"Core to our values are respect for people," Fields told Business Insider. "And all of our policies, including our human resource policies, support a diverse and inclusive workplace and we don't support policies that are counter to our values. We are going to stay focused to the well-being of our employees and running a successful business."
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google
"We're upset about the impact of this order and any proposals that could impose restrictions on Googlers and their families, or that could create barriers to bringing great talent to the US," Pichai wrote in a company-wide email.
"It's painful to see the personal cost of this executive order on our colleagues."
Read more here.
Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs
"The president has issued an executive order that, generally, bans individuals from seven different countries from entering the United States and freezes the broader refugee program. This is not a policy we support, and I would note that it has already been challenged in federal court, and some of the order has been enjoined at least temporarily."
Read the full statement here.
Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks
"I write to you today with deep concern, a heavy heart and a resolute promise. Let me begin with the news that is immediately in front of us: we have all been witness to the confusion, surprise and opposition to the Executive Order that President Trump issued on Friday, effectively banning people from several predominantly Muslim countries from entering the United States, including refugees fleeing wars...
"We have a long history of hiring young people looking for opportunities and a pathway to a new life around the world. This is why we are doubling down on this commitment by working with our equity market employees as well as joint venture and licensed market partners in a concerted effort to welcome and seek opportunities for those fleeing war, violence, persecution and discrimination. There are more than 65 million citizens of the world recognized as refugees by the United Nations, and we are developing plans to hire 10,000 of them over five years in the 75 countries around the world where Starbucks does business."
Read the full statement here.
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan
"In light of recent executive orders in the United States regarding immigration policy, we want every one of you to know of our unwavering commitment to the dedicated people working here at JPMorgan Chase.
"This includes a number of our outstanding employees - all of whom have adhered to our country's immigration and employment processes - who have come to the United States to serve our company, clients and communities."
Read the full statement here.
Mark Parker, CEO of Nike
"Nike believes in a world where everyone celebrates the power of diversity. Regardless of whether or how you worship where you come from or who you love, everyone's individual experience is what makes us stronger as a whole.
Those values are being threatened by the recent executive order in the US banning refugees, as well as visitors, from seven Muslim-majority countries. This is a policy we don't support."
Read the full statement here.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook
"Like many of you, I'm concerned about the impact of the recent executive orders signed by President Trump.
We need to keep this country safe, but we should do that by focusing on people who actually pose a threat. Expanding the focus of law enforcement beyond people who are real threats would make all Americans less safe by diverting resources, while millions of undocumented folks who don't pose a threat will live in fear of deportation."
Read the full statement here.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX
"The blanket entry ban on citizens from certain primarily Muslim countries is not the best way to address the country's challenges," Musk tweeted.
Mark Benioff, CEO of Salesforce
"When we close our hearts & stop loving other people as ourselves (MK 12:31) we forget who we truly are - a light unto the nations," Benioff tweeted.
Michael Corbat, CEO of Citi
"Since the weekend, we have been reviewing the executive order on immigration, as well as statements by administration officials, to assess its impact. As a U.S. company and the world's most global financial institution, we are concerned about the message the executive order sends, as well as the impact immigration policies could have on our ability to serve our clients and contribute to growth. We have been advising colleagues who could be affected and will continue to support them and their families.
We are proud of Citi's diversity and the fact that we hail from over 100 countries. We encourage the leaders of the United States to find the right balance between protecting the country and its longstanding role as an open and welcoming society."
Read the full story here.
James Gorman, CEO of Morgan Stanley
"We are closely monitoring developments around the new U.S. travel restrictions imposed this weekend. While no individual employees were impacted in their travel to date, we are concerned for those individuals and their families who could be impacted and will provide them support as needed...
"We value immensely the contribution of all our employees from all over the world. Continuing to draw on talent from across the globe is a key element of Morgan Stanley's culture and ultimately to our success in serving our clients."
Read the full statement here.
Brad Smith, president of Microsoft
"As a company, Microsoft believes in a strong and balanced high-skilled immigration system. We also believe in broader immigration opportunities, like the protections for talented and law-abiding young people under the Deferred Access for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program, often called 'Dreamers'. We believe that immigration laws can and should protect the public without sacrificing people's freedom of expression or religion. And we believe in the importance of protecting legitimate and law-abiding refugees whose very lives may be at stake in immigration proceedings."
Read the full statement here.
Jeff Huber, CEO of Grail
"The stories I've heard personally of families separated and in the news of oppressed refugees stranded, and the overall impact of this order, are heartbreaking. I am saddened and ashamed of our administration's behavior in these actions. America is a country of immigrants that stands for hope and opportunity."
Read the full statement here.
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple
"In my conversations with officials here in Washington this week, I've made it clear that Apple believes deeply in the importance of immigration -- both to our company and to our nation's future. Apple would not exist without immigration, let alone thrive and innovate the way we do.
I've heard from many of you who are deeply concerned about the executive order issued yesterday restricting immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. I share your concerns. It is not a policy we support."
Read the full statement here.
Brent Saunders, CEO of Allergan
"[Allergan] is strong and bold because of diversity," Saunders tweeted. "Oppose any policy that puts limitations on our ability to attract the best & diverse talent."
Aaron Levie, CEO of Box
"I mean, one of our co-founders, for instance, is Iranian. So this directly is in opposition to what we believe about how you build great cultures of innovation, which is bringing in people from all around the world and all sorts of backgrounds," Levie told Marketplace. "Secondarily, I think what's maybe a little more unique to technology companies, and why you've seen such a resounding response, is most of our companies are global nearly on Day 1. And both the rhetoric of, you know, much of this campaign cycle, as well as now this policy, is very divisive, to our allies, to our partners, to our customers, globally. And that's incredibly, we think, dangerous."
Travis Kalanick, CEO of Uber
"While every government has their own immigration controls, allowing people from all around the world to come here and make America their home has largely been the U.S.'s policy since its founding. That means this ban will impact many innocent people-an issue that I will raise this coming Friday when I go to Washington for President Trump's first business advisory group meeting."
Read the full statement here.
John Zimmer and Logan Green, co-founders of Lyft
"We created Lyft to be a model for the type of community we want our world to be: diverse, inclusive, and safe.
This weekend, Trump closed the country's borders to refugees, immigrants, and even documented residents from around the world based on their country of origin. Banning people of a particular faith or creed, race or identity, sexuality or ethnicity, from entering the U.S. is antithetical to both Lyft's and our nation's core values. We stand firmly against these actions, and will not be silent on issues that threaten the values of our community."
Yancey Strickler, CEO of Kickstarter
"Kickstarter opposes the #MuslimBan. We stand for inclusion, diversity, and our common humanity," Strickler tweeted.
Jon Oringer, CEO of Shutterstock
"We should be doing everything in our power to attract talented people to the United States as well as those in need of a safe place to live. We are all immigrants and when we close the door to immigrants from certain countries, not to mention to refugees, we are telling all immigrants that they are not welcome here."
Read the full statement here.
Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix
"Trump's actions are hurting Netflix employees around the world, and are so un-American it pains us all. Worse, these actions will make America less safe (through hatred and loss of allies) rather than more safe. A very sad week, and more to come with the lives of over 600,000 Dreamers here in a America under imminent threat. It is time to link arms together to protect American values of freedom and opportunity."
Read the statement here.
Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb
"Yesterday, the President of the Unites States signed an executive order limiting immigration and travel to the US for certain people from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
This is a policy that I profoundly disagree with and it is a direct obstacle to our mission at Airbnb."
Read the full statement here.
Foursquare
"We @Foursquare oppose the executive order on immigration. It's against American openness to people seeking a better, safer or freer life," Foursquare tweeted. "Diversity has built the greatest engine of progress and invention in the history of the world: the American economy."
(Pictured: Foursquare Founder Dennis Crowley)
"Twitter is built by immigrants of all religions. We stand for and with them, always," the company tweeted.
Merck
"We are committed to our employees of all nationalities and religions. We are actively reaching out to employees who may be affected by the Executive Order to provide legal advice and other assistance," a company spokesperson told Business Insider.
Illumina
"Our primary concern is for our employees who may be directly impacted by this policy and we are doing everything we can to support them at this time. Our ability to innovate depends on a diverse and talented team of individuals from different geographies, backgrounds, and experiences. We will be proactively reaching out to members of Congress to share our concerns about how changes in immigration policies like this impact Illumina and our employees," the company said in a statement.
IBM
"IBM has long believed in diversity, inclusion and tolerance. As we shared with all IBMers this weekend, we have always sought to enable the balance between the responsible flow of people, ideas, commerce and information with the needs of security, everywhere in the world. As IBMers, we have learned, through era after era, that the path forward - for innovation, for prosperity, and for civil society - is the path of engagement and openness to the world. Our company will continue to work and advocate for this," the company said in a statement.
