Google is reassigning its global head of diversity and research after excerpts from a 2007 blog post containing antisemitic comments resurfaced, according to a June 3 report by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Five details:
- In a now-deleted 2007 blog post, titled "If I Were A Jew," by Kamau Bobb, PhD, said, "If I were a Jew I would be concerned about my insatiable appetite for war and killing in defense of myself."
- On June 3, Google told the Chronicle that Dr. Bobb "will no longer be part of our diversity team going forward and will focus on his STEM work."
- "We unequivocally condemn the past writings by a member of our diversity team that are causing deep offense and pain to members of our Jewish community and our LGBTQ+ community," Google said. "These writings are unquestionably hurtful. The author acknowledges this and has apologized."
- Dr. Bobb's blog post was published after the 2006 Lebanon War, where 1,000 people were killed in a conflict between the Israel Defense Forces and militant group Hezbollah, Forbes reported. At the time of his blog post, Dr. Bobb worked as a research associate at Atlanta-based Georgia Institute of Technology's Technology and Policy Assessment Center, according to his LinkedIn page.
- Dr. Bobb apologized to Google's Jewish staff in an email statement: "What I wrote crudely characterized the entire Jewish community. what was intended as a critique of particular military action fed into antisemitic tropes and prejudice. I think we can all agree, there is no easy solution to this situation. but that’s beside the point. the way I expressed my views on that conflict were hurtful."