As Maggie Gallagher noted on the Corner, thousands have signed a petition calling for new Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich to either openly endorse gay marriage or be fired.
Six years ago, Eich donated $1,000 to the successful Proposition 8 campaign that created a constitutional amendment preserving the traditional definition of marriage in California. Eich, who is famous for creating JavaScript, was a co-founder of Mozilla and was appointed CEO after having served as Mozilla’s chief technology officer since 2005.
Since Thursday, several Mozilla employees have called for Eich to resign because of his view on marriage. A few took to Twitter to publicize their opinions:
I'm an employee of @mozilla and cannot reconcile having @BrendanEich as CEO with our org's culture & mission. Brendan, please step down.
— Sydney Moyer (@sydneymoyer) March 27, 2014
I'm an employee of @mozilla and I'm asking @BrendanEich to step down as CEO.
— John Bevan (@bevangelist) March 27, 2014
https://twitter.com/chmcavoy/statuses/449230809493278721
Like many @Mozilla staff, I'm taking a stand. I do not support the Board's appointment of @BrendanEich as CEO. #Prop8 http://t.co/msKVNjuhgR
— ▇ Dr Kat Braybrooke ▇▇▇ (@codekat) March 27, 2014
Have waited too long to say this. I'm an employee of @mozilla and I'm asking @brendaneich to step down as CEO. https://t.co/K3OqeImUnU
— ˗ˏˋA local tipster ˎˊ˗ (@iamjessklein) March 27, 2014
OkCupid, a popular dating site, posted a message to those who access the site with Mozilla Firefox, urging users to switch to another browser because Eich is “an opponent of equal rights for gay couples,” as the message said. It continued: “OkCupid is for creating love. Those who seek to deny love and instead enforce misery, shame, and frustration are our enemies, and we wish them nothing but failure.”
Those who still wished to use Firefox to access OkCupid were able to do so.
Eich responded to criticism in a blog post on March 26 in an attempt to allay any concerns that Mozilla is not an inclusive place. “I am committed to ensuring that Mozilla is, and will remain, a place that includes and supports everyone, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, age, race, ethnicity, economic status, or religion,” he wrote. “You will see exemplary behavior from me toward everyone in our community, no matter who they are; and the same toward all those whom we hope will join, and for those who use our products.”
Eich did not renounce his support of traditional marriage in his blog.