Over the past week, I’ve struggled to process and find the words to express my thoughts about the senseless murder of George Floyd and the deeper systemic issue of racism that plagues our country. Like many of you, I’ve found it increasingly challenging to read recent news without feeling a sense of despair and anger towards the injustices that exist in our world. In the past, it’s been easier to turn to our political leaders to find solutions to our society’s most vexing problems. We could trust our elected leaders to fulfill their duties to uphold the freedom and liberties afforded to us by our forefathers for all Americans.
The Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution proclaims “No state shall make or enforce any law which shall [shorten] the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Today, on issues where political leadership is absent, partisan divide is rampant. Our elected officials (on both sides of the aisle) are failing in a major way to solve real problems with real solutions. The lack of vision and leadership by our government has shifted the onus of leadership onto business and community leaders to stand up and make clear that we will not silently tolerate these injustices that unfold before our eyes.
The deadliest disease that plagues our country today is not COVID-19, but it is systemic racism. Our economy is the greatest in the world because of the liberties afforded to us to invent, to prosper and to share our passions. As CEO, I see that our greatest advantage in the marketplace is neither our technology nor our incredible story of success. Our greatest advantage is you — the people who make up our radical enterprise. I’m proud to say that we have an amazing, global team that is rich in diversity — not only as defined by the color of our skin, but in background and life experience. When systems exist in our world that so obviously disenfranchise and limit people based on their race, this is a system that we must fight. And if our politicians won’t do it, then our business leaders will.
I pledge to you that our leadership team will reflect on what we can do over the coming weeks to contribute and harden our organization against discrimination. As we do that, I’d like to compel everyone on our team to think about the little things you can do each today to take charge of small moments and be positive, show empathy, be compassionate, and stand up for those who are belittled, disenfranchised and discriminated against. Changing society means changing our actions and perspectives, one win at a time — large and small alike.
