Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says 'appalled' by hate crime against Asian-Americans

Following recent reports of increased hatred and racism towards the Asian-Americans in the US, technology giant Microsoft Corporation and its CEO, Satya Nadella, have taken a stand against this reported ill-treatment.

Microsoft took to Twitter to openly condemn "hate, racial discrimination, and violence in all forms".

Also read | Google slams Microsoft over stance in media payments

With a caption stating the popular hashtag '#StopAsianHate', the tech giant wrote, "the Asian American Pacific Islander community, and the Asian community in regions around the world — including at Microsoft — continue to experience acts of hate and violence," the statement read.

"Microsoft is united with the Asian community globally and is committed to taking action to help confront racial injustice," it added.

This statement by Microsoft has come after the US' Department of Justice reported an alarming increase in hate crime towards the Asian-American and Asian communities in the US. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) claimed that more than 3,000 cases of abuse were reported between March and December 2020 — during the lockdown period — which is alarmingly high in comparison to 216 cases reported in 2019.

Also read | First Indian woman President of Oxford student union resigns over 'offensive' posts

"No one in America should fear violence because of who they are, what they look like or what part of the world they or their families came from," said Acting Deputy Attorney General John Carlin, who hosted a meeting with more than a dozen Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community groups. 

"The Department of Justice and our component agencies are committed to bringing all of our tools to bear in supporting AAPI communities as we address the horrific rise in hate and bias incidents occurring across the country."

Following this, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who belongs to the Indian-American community, also raised concerns over the increase in racial injustice.

"I am appalled by the ongoing acts of hate against Asian Americans and the Asian community globally. Racism, hate and violence have no place in our society. I am united with the Asian and Asian American community in standing against this injustice," he tweeted.