Well over 100 leaders in the tech sector signed an open letter Wednesday to express their belief that a Donald Trump presidency would be catastrophic. “We have listened to Donald Trump over the past year and we have concluded: Trump would be a disaster for innovation,” the letter states.
This foreboding letter notes that 40% of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants. Thus, the tech leaders warn that Trump’s hostility to immigration will slow the progress of innovation. They also warn that Donald Trump has proposed to “shut down” parts of the Internet as a security strategy, which would hinder a “free and open exchange of ideas.” The letter goes on:
“We stand against Donald Trump’s divisive candidacy and want a candidate who embraces the ideals that built America’s technology industry: freedom of expression, openness to newcomers, equality of opportunity , public investments in research and infrastructure, and respect for the rule of law.We embrace an optimistic vision for a more inclusive country, where American innovation continues to fuel opportunity, prosperity and leadership.”
The letter includes signatures from representatives of popular tech companies like Twitter, Slack, StubHub, Expedia, Flickr, Dropbox, Tumblr, Yelp, Medium, Reddit, Wikipedia, Instagram, and Snapchat. Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, is also a signatory. This note follows Apple’s withholding of Macbooks from the RNC after Trump’s presumptive nomination.