Amazon employees staged a die-in Wednesday at the company's Seattle headquarters, disrupting a company Pride Month celebration in protest of Amazon's continued sale of transphobic books.
There has been increased employee activism at large technology companies.
A request for comment was not immediately responded to by Amazon. The company supports trans rights and its employees.
No Hate At Amazon was one of the groups that protested at the Pride flag-raising ceremony on the Amazon campus in Seattle. In speeches, protestors accused the company of attempting to "rainbow wash" its image while making money off of the sale of content that harms trans people.
—Katherine Long (@_katya_long) June 1, 2022
Seattle Pride barred Amazon from sponsoring its annual Pride Parade because of the company's financial donations to politicians who support anti-gay legislation.
Nearly 600 Amazon employees signed a petition earlier this year asking the company to stop selling books like "Irreversible Damage" and "Johnny The Walrus", and to give them more say over which books the company decides to stop selling. Employees say that both books are banned from being sold by Amazon due to their depiction of sexual identities as mental illnesses. Some employees resigned because of the decision by Amazon to continue selling those books.
A long time Amazon employee who participated in the protest said they weren't in a financial position to resign. The employee said that Amazon has fired employees who protested their policies before.
Protesting is a risk that a lot of us are willing to take because we can't continue to work for this company and turn a morally blind eye to its policies.
The die-in was intended to highlight the high suicide rates of trans youth who face discrimination and are denied gender-affirming healthcare.
In the past year, Republicans at the state level have advanced legislation to restrict access to medical treatment, sports, and public facilities for trans youths.
Are you interested in working at Amazon? Do you have a tip? If you would like to contact the reporter, you can email klong@insider.com.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
