In Silicon Valley Vs. Trump, Tech Workers Wield the Real Power

This week, more than 2,000 Google employees walked out of work to protest President Trump's immigration ban. Far from disciplining them for leaving their desks, CEO Sundar Pichai and co-founder Sergey Brin treated workers to impassioned speeches of support. "Proud, moved, and touched to be at a company that boldly stands for its people," Googler Sam Tse tweeted. While Pichai and Brin were no doubt speaking from personal conviction--Brin's family fled the former Soviet Union when he was a boy--they also had little choice but to back their employees. Trump's directive cut to the heart of Silicon Valley's treasured values of globalism and openness, values widely embraced by the workers themselves.