Tech Companies Respond To Trump Administration's New Travel Ban
Technology companies spoke out in near-unison against the first travel ban issued by the Donald Trump administration. On Monday, following the signing of a second executive order designed to bar travel from six majority-Muslim countries, top tech firms once again started to voice their opposition.
Uber, Airbnb and Lyft were first to issue statements condemning the decision.
Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky took to Twitter to respond to the Trump administration's latest executive order. "Barring people from entering our country because of where they're from was wrong the first time around — still wrong," he wrote.
Lyft CEO Logan Green told the Verge, "Lyft stands firmly against this order. We will continue to speak out and take action when the values of our community are put at risk.” The head of the ridehailing service said he will meet with the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on Wednesday to discuss how the company can further support the group's efforts to challenge the ban.
In a statement issued to the Hill, a spokesperson for Uber said, "Our sentiment has not changed: President Trump's immigration ban is unjust and wrong. We will continue to stand up for those in the Uber community affected."
Lyft and Airbnb offered forceful rebukes of the original executive order in January. At the time, Lyft pledged to donate $1 million to the ACLU, while Airbnb offered free housing to anyone affected by the travel ban.
Uber's speedy response to the latest ban may be a reaction to the company being widely criticized in the wake of the first executive order. Company CEO Travis Kalanick was seated on President Trump's economic advisor board at the time— he has since stepped down — and the company was seen as attempting to break a taxi strike in New York by temporarily removing surge pricing during a travel ban protest at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Those actions led to the #DeleteUber movement across social media. According to a report from the New York Times, the company lost nearly 200,000 users during the backlash.
Other major tech firms that led the charge within the tech community against the original travel ban — including companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google and Facebook — have yet to issue statements regarding the latest travel ban and have not responded to requests for comment from International Business Times.
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