An announcement from the CEO of San Francisco tech company Twilio reveals that recent lay-offs were carried out through an “anti-racist” and “anti-oppression” perspective.
The announcement, titled “A Message from Twilio CEO Jeff Lawson,” explains that an “anti-racist” lens was used to decide who would be subject to the company’s layoffs. The cloud communications technology company is laying off 11 percent of its workforce, according to a CNBC report.
The explanation of the layoff was included under a section of the announcement called “How did we decide which roles would be impacted.”
“As you all know, we are committed to becoming an Anti-Racist/Anti-Oppression company,” the report reads.
It goes on to say “Layoffs like this can have a more pronounced impact on marginalized communities, so we were particularly focused on ensuring our layoffs … were carried out through an Anti-Racist/Anti-Oppression lens.”
Twilio’s CEO does not explain how layoffs have a “more pronounced impact on marginalized communities.” He also does not explain what exactly an “anti-racist” or an “anti-oppression” mass firing might look like.
The company’s 2021 diversity report explains that the company is attempting to build an “anti-racist culture” and includes demographic data on hiring rates by race. The report remarks that such data assists them in addressing “areas where we can support the advancement of underrepresented and marginalized communities.”
It also advertises various employee resource groups (ERG), which are intended for employees who share a common identity, often one rooted in their racial background. Twilio hosts ERGs for Asian, Latino, Filipino, and black employees.
Twilio calls the groups “an integral part of our antiracism strategy,” which “support us in finding, keeping, and retaining talent from diverse communities.”
“As we advance in our antiracist journey, we will support and position our ERGs to amplify our DEI [Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion] efforts and continue to hold us accountable in living our antiracism commitment,” their website also reads.
Trump-endorsed Senate candidate Blake Masters of Arizona has been one of the only Republican candidates to vocally oppose the affirmative action agenda. The candidate remarked that he was “declaring war” on the “dysfunctional affirmative action regime.”
“We’ve had enough of the Democrats’ diversity obsession. They put diversity over competence, over prosperity, and there are real costs to this,” Masters remarked.
Spencer Lindquist is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerLndqst and reach out at slindquist@breitbart.com.
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