TECH FOR TRANSGENDER RIGHTS: Some Silicon Valley tech titans are preparing to take the stand in support of 17-year-old Gavin Grimm, a transgender Virginia high school student who is suing his district in order to use his bathroom of choice. According to Axios and POLITICO, companies including Airbnb, Microsoft, PayPal, Salesforce, Slack, LinkedIn, Pandora and Apple have signed an amicus brief in support of Grimm, whose case will appear before the Supreme Court next month.
Several companies have already denounced Trump administration’s decision to revoke Obama-era guidance allowing transgender students to use the bathroom of their choice in public schools. Apple, which was among the first to speak out, made the following statement to TechCrunch last week on the ruling:
“Apple believes everyone deserves a chance to thrive in an environment free from stigma and discrimination. We support efforts toward greater acceptance, not less, and we strongly believe that transgender students should be treated as equals. We disagree with any effort to limit or rescind their rights and protections.”
