Our First Update: A Response to Deirdre O’Brien

First, we want to thank every single one of you who have signed the letter, or spread word about our campaign. We started #Apples4Ceasefire because we have been seeing things that do not line up with our values, or Apple’s, and we know that we have to speak up.

We’re thrilled to share that as of today, we have over 420 signatures. In just two weeks, we managed to double our signatory count, and it’s all because of you! Please continue to share the link, and encourage all Apple users to use the hashtag #Apples4Ceasefire to get the company’s attention.

Speaking of getting Apple’s attention, we wanted to directly respond to Deirdre O’Brien’s video to retail staff that was posted last week through Hello. For those who aren’t in retail, or don’t work at the company, this is what she had to say specifically about Gaza — can you spot the references she made to our letter?:

I have a couple of important topics to talk about today and I’ll start by saying I hope you’re all doing well. I say that because we recognize that there are so many challenges in the world right now, and I want to take this time to thank you for everything that you’ve done to support each other and be there for each other. It is such an important time to make sure that we’re coming together and continue to create a safe, respectful and inclusive environment where people feel that they truly belong. And in the world we want to recognize the awful impact of antisemitism and Islamophobia. We want make sure that Apple is a safe place for everyone.

The Middle East situation is deeply impacting for so many of our team members around the world. Palestinian and Israeli. And the ongoing humanitarian crisis has taken an unimaginable toll.

The UN has identified famine as an immediate and urgent threat to millions of people, in places including Gaza, Haiti, Mali, Somalia and Ukraine. In light of this pressing need, Apple will make a 2:1 match for all employee donations to a select group of organizations doing the work to address hunger and food insecurity in these places. These contributions join Apple’s ongoing humanitarian efforts across these regions.

We know that many of you are worried about family and friends, and we are all so impacted by the suffering. And I really hope that we can all do all we can to support one another and take care of each other right now. I want to thank you for doing that. It’s how each of us shows up every day that makes a difference for all of us. And it’s just so important that people feel seen and supported right now.

It’s clear to us that our letter has gotten the attention of Apple executives. Let’s address this statement piece by piece, shall we?

“The Middle East situation is deeply impacting for so many of our team members around the world.”

This oversimplification of the genocide against Palestinians, and the system of apartheid that Israel has enforced upon them for decades, is an offensive and obtuse choice of words for a company that claims to believe in racial equity. Not only are you not being specific enough with what you’re talking about, but you’re continuing an orientalist mindset of lumping all of the Middle East together as one simple location.

And in calling out the humanitarian crisis, we must ask: When will Apple recognize who enabled the humanitarian crisis to begin with? For a team of scientists, engineers and mathematicians, we would assume that Apple is smart enough to know they’re dancing around the specific issues that prompted #Apples4Ceasefire.

“Apple will make a 2:1 match for all employee donations to a select group of organizations doing the work to address hunger and food insecurity in these places.”

First and foremost, we’re insulted by the company’s inability to specifically address the genocide happening against Palestinians. If the loss of a thousand innocent Israeli lives sparked an immediate response from our CEO, why does the death of over 70,000 Palestinians not deserve the same dedicated respect?

Additionally, we’d like to ask where is the direct contribution from Apple? Why are employees being told they can help, but we haven’t gotten any clarification from the company on how they intend to address the humanitarian crisis happening in their own backyard?

Secondly, the 2:1 matching only goes on until April 30, and there’s even a statement on the Benevity page for this announcement specifically saying “*Please note that due to the evolving circumstances impacting aid relief organizations providing support in Gaza, some organizations may have paused relief efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of their staff.” Not only does this 2:1 matching not go on long enough to truly help the victims of the genocide-enabled famine they want to help, but a donation to these organizations does not guarantee that you’re helping any Palestinian.

We ask instead that Apple employees use Benevity to directly fund Palestinian organizations like the Palestinian Red Crescent Society and the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, which are guaranteed to help those suffering in Gaza.

“…it’s just so important that people feel seen and supported right now.“

We’re sad to say that if this was the intent of Deirdre’s video, it did not land. Palestinians and their allies at this company are still feeling ostracized and unsupported, and creating a video where you lump everything in the Middle East as one “issue,” didn’t help. Not only this, but this video goes on past the quoted transcript to address other issues, and disgustingly boast about the opening of new stores.

Capitalism is gunna capitalize, and the decision to not make a dedicated video specifically about the human rights violations happening against Palestinians, while boasting about new stores so the company can make even more money, is wildly inappropriate.

To executive leadership: We ask that you take this issue seriously, and respond directly to the thousands of Palestinians killed by Israel.

And before we wrap up this update, we also wanted to let you know about an additional open letter started by even more Apple employees, demanding the removal of organizations on the company’s Benevity site that fund and weaponize illegal settlements in the West Bank. Yes, you read that right! Apple Inc. matches 100% to organizations in Israel that fund and arm illegal settlements on stolen Palestinian land. If you work for Apple, or if you own any Apple stocks, please take a moment to read and sign the letter.

The world is evolving, and we can no longer accept complicity from companies like Apple that have normalized relationships with a country found guilty of running a legal system of apartheid. We are on the precipice of a massive world movement that champions true racial equity and social justice, and the only question left is if Apple truly believes in those values.

Thank you so much for reading, and we’ll update you again when we have more to share.