Google announced in a statement on June 2 that their diversity head “will no longer be part of our diversity team going forward.”
The statement, which was obtained by the Journal, read: “We unequivocally condemn the past writings by a member of our diversity team that are causing deep offense and pain to members of our Jewish community and our LGBTQ+ community. These writings are unquestionably hurtful. The author acknowledges this and has apologized. He will no longer be part of our diversity team going forward and will focus on his STEM [Science Technology Engineering Math] work.
“This has come at a time where we’ve seen an alarming increase in antisemitic attacks. Antisemitism is a vile prejudice that has given rise to unfathomable acts. It has no place in society and we stand with our Jewish community in condemning it.”
Google’s statement comes after a 2007 blog post from Kamau Bobb, Google’s Global Lead for Diversity, Strategy and Research, was unearthed by the Washington Free Beacon. In the post Bobb criticized Israel for invoking “collective punishment” against the Gaza Strip and for “destroying buildings and breaking the glass” in the West Bank before stating: “If I were a Jew I would be concerned about my insatiable appetite for war and killing in defense of myself. Self defense is undoubtedly an instinct, but I would be afraid of my increasing insensitivity to the suffering others.”
Jewish groups lauded Google for the move.
“Google did the right thing,” Associate Dean and Director of Global Social Action Agenda at the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) Rabbi Abraham Cooper said in a statement. “We don’t need anti-Semites lecturing Jewish community while we are under assault by anti-Semites. SWC invites Google leadership to spend a day at our Museum of Tolerance they need it.”
.@Google did the right thing. We don’t need #antiSemites lecturing Jewish community while we are under assault by anti-Semites. SWC invites Google leadership to spend a day at our @musoftolerance – they need it. #KamauBobb https://t.co/TcnZYv0MdX via @jewishjournal
— SimonWiesenthalCntr (@simonwiesenthal) June 3, 2021
StandWithUs CEO and co-founder Roz Rothstein similarly tweeted, “THANK YOU @Google!! Thank you for saying that antisemitism is a vile and dangerous prejudice. Thank you for standing with the Jewish community. Thank you for taking Kamau Bobb out of your diversity team. Hopefully he is rethinking the words he uses.”
THANK YOU @Google !! Thank you for saying that antisemitism is a vile and dangerous prejudice. Thank you for standing with the Jewish community. Thank you for taking Kamau Bobb out of your diversity team. Hopefully he is rethinking the words he uses. https://t.co/PHy8W125En
— Roz Rothstein (@RozRothstein) June 3, 2021
Stop Antisemitism, on the other hand, tweeted that Google greenlit antisemitism. “Rather than doing the right thing and firing Kamou Bobb for his grotesque antisemitism, @Google transfers this vile bigot to a STEM team. We feel bad for the Jewish employees that are now stuck working with him.”
Google green lights Jew hatred.
Rather than doing the right thing and firing Kamou Bobb for his grotesque antisemitism, @Google transfers this vile bigot to a STEM team.
We feel bad for the Jewish employees that are now stuck working with him. https://t.co/h1s27oOFPm
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) June 3, 2021
Former New York Democratic Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who also heads Americans Against Antisemitism, tweeted sarcastically, “Those are some serious consequences for an unabashed Jew-hater! No more diversity work for Kamau Bobb, nope, now he’ll be forced to ‘focus on his STEM work’! That’ll teach him! #Screwgle.”
Those are some serious consequences for an unabashed Jew-hater!
No more diversity work for Kamau Bobb, nope, now he’ll be forced to “focus on his STEM work”!
That’ll teach him! 💪🏻#Screwgle https://t.co/CxRTJaFEJP
— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) June 3, 2021
Sussex Friends of Israel tweeted that it’s “not good enough” for Bobb to give an “‘internal’ apology” to Google. “You’d have thought he would have known that his words affect the entire Jewish community. Apologise to us all.”
This ‘apology’ that @Google talk of in this press release, it seems that was an ‘internal’ apology for the benefit of Google’s Jewish employees.
Not good enough!
You’d have thought he would have known that his words affect the entire Jewish community.
Apologise to us all https://t.co/WuukmQilof
— Self Declared Zionists (@SussexFriends) June 3, 2021
Judea Pearl, chancellor professor of computer science at UCLA, National Academy of Sciences member and Daniel Pearl Foundation president, tweeted, “It’s not Google that is at fault, it is ‘diversity’ that corrupts. ‘Diversity professionals’ see themselves qualified, if not obliged, to sort out other people by their ethnicity or culture and to rank them on a good/bad scale, deserving vs. undeserving of ‘diversity’ benefits.”
It's not Google that is at fault, it is "diversity" that corrupts. "Diversity professionals" see themselves qualified, if not obliged, to sort out other people by their ethnicity or culture and to rank them on a good/bad scale, deserving vs. undeserving of "diversity" benefits. https://t.co/e2OVLizDV4
— Judea Pearl (@yudapearl) June 3, 2021
This article has been updated.
