Google CEO Sundar Pichai speaks on stage during the annual Google I/O developers conference in Mountain View, California, May 8, 2018.
Stephen Lam | Reuters
Last week, Google CEO Sundar Pichai sent an email to employees noting the Atlanta shootings’ effect on the company’s large Asian population.
“I know the effects of the hateful violence reach way beyond Atlanta,” Pichai stated in a companywide email sent last week. “The loss of these eight lives is tragic — and so is the reality that anybody would be targeted because of their race or gender as appears to be the case here and in so many other recent incidents.”
Pichai sent the email after a shooting spree in Georgia last week killed eight people, including six Asian women, which spurred nationwide protests over the weekend. Countries including the U.S. have seen a rise in discrimination and violence against members of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities during the Covid-19 pandemic.
41.9% of Google’s full-time workforce is comprised of Asian-identifying employees, according to the company’s latest representation data.
Pichai’s note to employees went on to say company leaders have checked in with the company’s site leads in the Atlanta area.
“The news is weighing heavily on all of us,” he said. “Please reach out to your managers and teammates if you need support or some time to process.”
Pichai continued to say the company condemns racism, sexism and violence “in all its forms,” adding that it stands with Asian and Pacific Islander communities.
Pichai first made a statement in February when he and other tech leaders tweeted the hashtag #StopAsianHate, stating, “It’s important that we not let the violence against Asian & Pacific Islander communities fade from the headlines.”
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