MàJ le 04/06/2020 13:57 : Apple a publié une version légèrement remaniée du message de Tim Cook sur la version américaine de son site web, à cette adresse. Un paragraphe dédié spécifiquement aux employés d'Apple a été supprimé, quelques éléments ont été retouchés, mais c'est le même message dans les grandes lignes.

Article original du 1er juin

Tim Cook a adressé un message à ses employés, à la lueur des événements aux États-Unis après la mort de George Floyd à Minneapolis, tué par un policier. Plusieurs Apple Store ont été exceptionnellement fermés pour des raisons de sécurité et certains ont fait l'objet de pillages à Washington, New York ou Los Angeles.

Le patron d'Apple inscrit la mort « insensée » de George Floyd dans le contexte d'une longue histoire du racisme qui se poursuit aujourd'hui, jusque dans des actes et situations du quotidien, « Nous avons constaté des progrès depuis l'Amérique où j'ai grandi, mais il est également vrai que les communautés de couleur continuent de subir des discriminations et traumatismes ».

Il s'adresse ensuite plus particulièrement à ses équipes : « À nos collègues de la communauté noire — vous êtes considérés. Vous comptez, votre vie compte et vous êtes appréciés ici chez Apple. […] À tous nos collègues qui souffrent en ce moment, sachez que vous n'êtes pas seuls et que nous avons les ressources pour vous aider ». Apple a également fait des dons à des associations de lutte contre le racisme et elle abondera, dans un ratio de 2 pour 1, ceux de ses employés durant le mois de juin.

Le mail de Tim Cook obtenu par Bloomberg :

Team,

Right now, there is a pain deeply etched in the soul of our nation and in the hearts of millions. To stand together, we must stand up for one another, and recognize the fear, hurt, and outrage rightly provoked by the senseless killing of George Floyd and a much longer history of racism.

That painful past is still present today — not only in the form of violence, but in the everyday experience of deeply rooted discrimination. We see it in our criminal justice system, in the disproportionate toll of disease on Black and Brown communities, in the inequalities in neighborhood services and the educations our children receive. While our laws have changed, the reality is that their protections are still not universally applied.

We’ve seen progress since the America I grew up in, but it is similarly true that communities of color continue to endure discrimination and trauma.

I have heard from so many of you that you feel afraid — afraid in your communities, afraid in your daily lives, and, most cruelly of all, afraid in your own skin. We can have no society worth celebrating unless we can guarantee freedom from fear for every person who gives this country their love, labor and life.

At Apple, our mission has and always will be to create technology that empowers people to change the world for the better. We’ve always drawn strength from our diversity, welcomed people from every walk of life to our stores around the world, and strived to build an Apple that is inclusive of everyone.

But together, we must do more. Today, Apple is making donations to a number of groups, including the Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit committed to challenging racial injustice, ending mass incarceration, and protecting the human rights of the most vulnerable people in American society. For the month of June, and in honor of the Juneteenth holiday, we’ll also be matching two-for-one all employee donations via Benevity.

To create change, we have to reexamine our own views and actions in light of a pain that is deeply felt but too often ignored. Issues of human dignity will not abide standing on the sidelines. To our colleagues in the Black community — we see you. You matter, your lives matter, and you are valued here at Apple.

For all of our colleagues hurting right now, please know that you are not alone, and that we have resources to support you. It’s more important than ever to talk to one another, and to find healing in our common humanity. We also have free resources that can help, including our Employee Assistance Program and mental health resources you can learn about on the People site.

This is a moment when many people may want nothing more than a return to normalcy, or to a status quo that is only comfortable if we avert our gaze from injustice. As difficult as it may be to admit, that desire is itself a sign of privilege. George Floyd’s death is shocking and tragic proof that we must aim far higher than a “normal” future, and build one that lives up to the highest ideals of equality and justice.

In the words of Martin Luther King, “Every society has its protectors of status quo and its fraternities of the indifferent who are notorious for sleeping through revolutions. Today, our very survival depends on our ability to stay awake, to adjust to new ideas, to remain vigilant and to face the challenge of change.”

With every breath we take, we must commit to being that change, and to creating a better, more just world for everyone.

Tim