A group of Google employees, under the name “Ban Google From Pride,” plans to march in protest of their employer’s policies toward LGBTQ harassment on YouTube and other platforms on Sunday at San Francisco’s Pride Parade. Protesters will join a “Resistance Contingent,” separate from Google’s official corporate presence at the parade, after the company warned employees not to protest the company’s policies while officially representing Google at the event.
“We are deeply disturbed that leadership at Google and YouTube has failed to offer any commitment of protection for the LGBTQ+ community, despite repeated requests for such changes,” the group said in a statement on Friday. “We use our participation in the Pride Parade as an opportunity to continue loudly, proudly, and publicly demanding this change. When employers fail to set policies that align with our values, we as employees are compelled to act to change those policies.”
Around 140 Google employees signed a letter asking Pride’s organizers to drop Google as an official sponsor of the parade. Pride ultimately declined to do so, but offered these protesters what’s considered a highly visible spot at the beginning of the parade, with the resistance contingent. While organizers behind the letter said they’re “disappointed” that San Francisco Pride organizers will not be revoking the company’s sponsorship, both camps view Google employees joining the “Resistance Contingent” as a compromise. Read more via Vox