Apple CEO Tim Cook Donating To Gay Rights Campaign
Apple CEO Tim Cook is donating a 'substantial' amount to help fund gay rights initiative in his native Alabama and two other Southern states, said organizers.
According to activists, Cook made a hefty private donation to the Human Rights Campaign's Project One America - an initiative working toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas. The campaign includes advertising on TV and elsewhere, including direct-mail flyers and hiring staff members in each state.
"When Tim first learned about HRC's Project One America - our bold, comprehensive campaign to dramatically advance equality for LGBT Americans in Alabama, Arkansas and Mississippi - he said, 'I'm in,'" according to an HRC blog post.
"We hope Tim Cook's substantial personal investment inspires others to support this vital and historic project," said HRC spokesman Jason Rahlan, according to Apple Insider.
Cook is the first openly gay CEO of a Fortune 500 company which he recently decided to announce publicly. The announcement came just days after Cook encouraged Alabama to be more accepting of gay rights during a speech in Montgomery.
"Under the law, citizens of Alabama can still be fired based on their sexual orientation," Cook said in October. "We can't change the past, but we can learn from it and we can create a different future."
