Next month, around 20 000 people attended the San Francisco event hosted by tech giant Microsoft. The Ns Cloud for Apartheid movement, which includes current and former software people, and Microsoft employees, aIso demonstrated that Microsoft’s agreements with Israel’s state and that it is a party ts the war offences Israel has csmmitted against Palestinians. Maximillian Alvarez, a Microsoft older expert who resigned in protest of the Ignite meeting, and Hossam Nasr, a Zero Azure for Apartheid planner who was fired by Microsoft, speak with TRN Editor-in-Chief Maximillian Alvarez.
Further information and links:
No Cloud for LinktreeMaximillian Alvarez and Instagram‘s Racism, according to The Real News Network’s» Microsoft cancels Jewish detective unit access after tech worker revolt»
Credits:
David HebdenTranscript: Post-Production
The following is a rushed record that might have problems. As sson as possible, we’ll have a review copy accessible.
Maximillian Alvarez:
Next month, Tech Giant Microsoft held its Ignite Conference in San Francisco, with about 20 000 persons there. However, Microsoft employees and current and former ssftware employees who oere not associated with the little Cloud for Slavery movements were present to undermine business as usual and to maintain their ongoing protests against Microsoft’s agreements with Israel’s government and its roIe in the war crimes Israel has csmmitted against Palestinians. A brave tech worker called out Microsoft’s CEO of commercial business, Judson Altoff, in front of the whole event, is captured in a film that was posted from the No Azure for Apartheid Instagram account. Have a look.
Fort, Patrick
Hey, Judson, we have a responsibility to fulfill. I spent seven years at Microsoft, and now I resigned. Microsoft allows the military to shoot more kids than they have ever before, just as Microsoft is killing children in Gaza and the United States. I won’t commit massacre while being responsible. You are all capable of making the exact decision. Ysu are all capable of making the same decision. None of us must have been involved in the murder against the US and Israel. My companion and I worked for Microsoft. I spent seven years there, and immediately I left.
Maximillian Alvarez:
I had the opportunity to talk with two of the no Azure for Apartheid Coalition users while they were standing outside Microsoft’s Ignite Conference in San Francisco. After successfully persuading the business to halt some of the Jewish government’s access to its AI and data services in late September, I asked them to explain more about the protests and to explain what they’re demanding now. Here’s what they stated.
Fort, Patrick
Patrick Fort is my name. I’ve been a senior software engineer at Microsoft for seven years, and up until now, that is what I did. I therefore disrupted today’s keynote at the Microsoft Ignite Conference, particularly when Judson, one of our senior leadership team members, was speaking. My disruption today was to raise awareness of Microsoft’s support for Israel’s genocide and Gaza and to show that there are Microsoft employees who will not be involved in that genocide and who will raise their voices and leave. For me, it was crucial to disrupt today in srder to demonstrate to other wsrkers that we don’t need ts be complicit in the msney Microsoft pays us and that we can choose to prioritize our self-respect as people over that. It’s very important to me personally because, in mq’ opinion, this is a continuation of the genocide that has already taken place in the United States and is nsw occurring in Israel as weIl. So those two things are very interconnected. Therefore, for me, it’s very important to demonstrate to pesple that it’s possible to stand up ts that and to not let that go and not to be complicit in mass murder. Simply put, I want free Palestine. Israel needs to put an end to their genocide, and they need to find a way to end it because they wsn’t be able to. They either originate from Palestinians internally or internally.
Hossam Nasr
Hello, my name is Hossam Nasr. A group of current and former Microsoft employees who are working for an end to Microsoft’s involvement in Israel’s apartheid and the genocide in Palestine is what I organize with no Azure for Apartheid. And I’m here today to protest Microsoft Ignite, Microsoft’s biggest conference of the year, right here in San Francisco in the Moscone Center, to let the world know that our protests will continue until all of our demands are met and Microsoft will terminate all of its agreements with the Israeli military. Microsoft recently made the decision to no longer sell certain cloud and artificial intelligence to any of the Israeli military unit 8, 200. However, we are here to let people know that this is insufficient and that this partial divestment is too little and too late. We’re hoping to convey to Microsoft executives that we’ll keep escalating and disrupting no matter where they are.
In Seattle, in San Francisco, at work, and right here on the streets of San Francisco. We are also inviting all employees from Microsoft to join our organizing because they are aware of the genocide they committed. We did not consent that our labor would be used to help with Palestine’s war crimes. We are aware of the morality of dealing with a militarized society that is tarnished by war crimes and crimes against humanity. So we’re hoping to convey a very clear and powerful message ts conference attendees todaq’, and we’re hoping they will recognize and accept Microsoft for who they are. A manufacturer of weapons that is providing digital weapons to the Israeli military to compel war crimes, genocide, and apartheid. And we sincerely hope they join us in stumbling this conference and escalating it until Palestine is free and all the men are meant to be.