Tim Cook: Apple Employee Kicking Black Teens Out Of Store Was “Unacceptable”
The video showed three black teenagers from Sudan and Somalia asking why they weren’t allowed in an Apple store, at which point the employee says workers are worried they’ll shoplift.
After Apple’s public apology, Cook fired off a company-wide email (obtained by BuzzFeed News), writing that “what people have seen and heard from watching the video on the web does not represent our values.”
“It is not a message we would ever want to deliver to a customer or hear ourselves. None of us are happy with the way this was handled,” he added.
He went on to echo the company’s earlier stance on inclusiveness, writing that “our stores and our hearts are open to people from all walks of life, regardless of race or religion, gender or sexual orientation, age, disability, income, language or point of view.”
Though he says he believes this was an isolated incident, Cook writes that “store leadership teams, starting in Australia, will be refreshing their training on inclusion and customer engagement.”
It’s unclear if the manager involved is facing any disciplinary measures, but Cook says the employee “immediately expressed his regret and apologized to the students.”
In addition, another Apple store employee apologized to the students at their high school, and reassured the teens and their peers that they’d always be welcome at the store.
You can read the entire email at the source link below.
Here’s Tim Cook’s Email About Black Teens Barred Entry From Apple Store [BuzzFeed News]
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