Google, Apple, Microsoft, et al, would rather kiss the Supreme Ruler’s ring than provide accurate information to its customers.
According to The Guardian, Google’s online and mobile calendars no longer include references to Black History Month, Women’s History Month and LGBTQ+ holidays, among other events. Google is also rolling back its previous commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in its employment policies following the US president’s orders to curb DEI in federal agencies.
Google is not a federal agency, but I digress.
Google also changed the name of the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America” and now calls the largest mountain in the US, “Mount McKinley,” even though the proper name is “Denali.”
On Twitter, Google said, “We have a longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.” Google did not say they were afraid of retribution, but their actions speak volumes.
In related news, vindictive little men in The White House blocked an Associated Press reporter from an event in the Oval Office on Tuesday for refusing to change the name of the Gulf. Barring the AP reporter was a violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
The AP said last month, three days after Trump’s inauguration, that it would continue to refer to the Gulf of Mexico while noting Trump’s decision to rename it as well. As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP says it must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that her government may file a civil lawsuit against Google if it maintains its stance. Sheinbaum also clarified that Trump’s decree is restricted to the “continental shelf of the United States” because Mexico still controls much of the Gulf. “We have sovereignty over our continental shelf,” she said.
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