Workers, activists stage protest over Israeli ties at Microsoft HQ
A collective of current and former Microsoft staff, along with community activists, staged a demonstration in a plaza at the company's headquarters in Redmond, Washington, on Tuesday to object to its collaboration with the Israeli military.The participants, who came together under the name No Azure for Apartheid, proclaimed the East Campus Plaza a “Liberated Zone,” renaming it “The Martyred Palestinian Children’s Plaza.” Initially, around 50 individuals joined the encampment, as reported in a press release.
Demonstrators set up tents, banners, and creative installations to honor civilians lost in Gaza, featuring symbolic shrouds and a plate that read “Stop Starving Gaza.” Additionally, they arranged a negotiating table, accompanied by signs encouraging Microsoft executives to “come to the table” to discuss the termination of the company’s Azure cloud agreement with Israel. The group expressed its intention to sustain the encampment until they are forcibly removed. Microsoft has yet to respond to the protest.
This demonstration follows a number of significant protests against the company's collaborations with Israel. In April, employees interrupted speeches by CEO Satya Nadella and AI chief Mustafa Suleyman with demands to end contracts related to the military. Those two employees were subsequently dismissed. In May, employees further alleged that Microsoft had blocked Outlook emails containing terms like “Palestine,” “Gaza,” and “apartheid.”
In its press release, No Azure for Apartheid referred to Tuesday’s demonstration as “the largest escalation targeting Microsoft” to date. The group pointed to a recent investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call, which indicated that Israel aimed to store up to “a million calls an hour” made by Palestinians, data which was purportedly used in military operations.
The activists distributed a manifesto encouraging Microsoft employees to “speak up, walk out, protest, \[and] strike,” and called for broader divestment from Israel. The document also urged Microsoft to put an end to what it characterized as workplace discrimination against pro-Palestine personnel.
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