Google reassigns global head of diversity and research over 2007 blog about Jews

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:

  1. 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."

  2. 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."

  3. "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."

  4. 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.

  5. 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."

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