Apple is a member of a group of companies drafting a formal letter in opposition of President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration. Recode reports Apple, Facebook, Google, and a “consumer goods company” are among the U.S. companies drafting the letter.
In a separate report, Bloomberg says Microsoft and Amazon are also involved in the drafting of the memo. The companies are expressing their concern about and opposition to a recent Trump executive order barring Syrian refugees from entering the U.S. and also suspending entrance into the country of residents of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
The draft letter is said to be circulating among companies in a variety of fields, including consumer goods, energy, finance, and manufacturing. Recode has published what it says is a draft of the letter, it reads as follows:
Dear President Trump,
Since the country’s birth, America has been the land of opportunity – welcoming newcomers and giving them the chance to build families, careers, and businesses in the United States. We are a nation made stronger by immigrants. As entrepreneurs and business leaders, our ability to grow our companies and create jobs depends on the contributions of immigrants from all backgrounds.
We share your goal of ensuring that our immigration system meets today’s security needs and keeps our country safe. We are concerned, however, that your recent executive order will affect many visa holders who work hard here in the United States and contribute to our country’s success. In a global economy, it is critical that we continue to attract the best and brightest from around the world. We welcome the changes your administration has made in recent days in how the Department of Homeland Security will implement the executive order, and we stand ready to help your administration identify other opportunities to ensure that our employees can travel with predictability and without undue delay.
Our nation’s compassion is a part of what makes it exceptional, and we are committed to helping your administration identify approaches for thorough screening without a blanket suspension of admissions under the U.S. Refugee Admissions program. While security and vetting procedures can and should always be subject to continuous evaluation and improvement, a blanket suspension is not the right approach.
Similarly, we stand ready to identify ways of helping to achieve your stated goal of bringing clarity to the future of the 750,000 Dreamers in this country under the protections of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in a way “that will make people happy and proud.” Removing these protections by barring renewals would effectively end the program and eliminate the ability for these Dreamers to work and live without the fear of deportation.
The business community shares your commitment to growing the American economy and expanding job creation across the country. We hire both thousands of Americans and some of the most talented people from abroad, who work together to help our companies succeed and expand our overall employment. As you contemplate changes to the nation’s complex and interconnected immigration policies, whether business and employment-based visas, refugees, or DACA, we hope that you will use us as a resource to help achieve immigration policies that both support the work of American businesses and reflect American values.
The companies offer to help in creating a screening process that would allow resuming refugee programs, says Bloomberg. Companies signing on to the draft also are willing to aid in resolving the status of 750,000 undocumented immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as children under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Earlier this week, Apple CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal that Apple was considering legal action against the ban.
[Cook said] that he continues to contact “very, very senior people in the White House” and impress on them why repealing the executive order is important not only for Apple but for the country.
“More than any country in the world, this country is strong because of our immigrant background and our capacity and ability as people to welcome people from all kinds of backgrounds. That’s what makes us special,” said Mr. Cook. “We ought to pause and really think deeply through that.”
Cook told the publication about the “heart-wrenching” emails he’d received from Apple employees affected by the travel ban.
One employee who’s expecting a child said the future grandparents have Canadian and Iranian citizenship and won’t be able to visit to meet their new grandchild.
So far, Apple has yet to take legal steps against the executive order. However, Apple is encouraging its employees to donate to refugee relief funds, promising to match each donation at a 2-to-1 rate.
(Via AppleInsider)
