Apple pledges $100 million for its new Racial Equity and Justice Initiative

Apple has announced a new Racial Equity and Justice Initiative and has pledged $100 million to it. This initiative will be led by Lisa Jackson. Jackson is Apple’s vice president of environment, policy and social initiatives.

Announcing the new initiative on Twitter, Apple CEO Tim Cook said - “We’re at an important moment in our history. A time when progress, which has been far too slow, feels suddenly poised to move forward in a great leap. Things must change and Apple is committed to being a force for that change.”

The initiative will begin in the US and expand globally and the $100 million that’s been committed will be used to finance initiatives that address economic equality, criminal justice reform and education.

Cook mentioned in the video he shared with his tweet that Apple would build on existing work with “historically Black colleges and universities, community colleges, and science, technology, engineering and mathematics education”, particularly among the underserved and Black communities.

Besides this, Apple is going to work with Montgomery, Alabama-based Equal Justice Initiative. Equal Justice Initiative is a nonprofit organisation that works with criminal justice reform and racial injustice. Apple will also be hosting a developer and entrepreneur camp for promising candidates ahead of the Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC).

Cook added that Apple would commit to working on increasing its total spend on its Black-owned business partners and increase representation within all companies it does business with. The focus is going to be on representation, inclusion and accountability, Cook said.

Rounding up, Cook said that the ultimate accountability for change falls upon the leaders of a company to “avoid making requests and having the work fall on the shoulders of employees and partners who are already dealing with lack of representation”.

“The burden of change must not fall on those who are underrepresented,” said Cook.