President Trump immigration order: Google’s Sergey Brin joins protesters

Brin’s family immigrated from Soviet Union to the US in 1979. When asked for a statement by The Verge he refused to comment and said he was attending ‘in a personal capacity’.

Google CEO, Sundar Pichai, who’s also an immigrant criticised Trump’s controversial order, saying it will create ‘barriers’ in bringing good talent to the United States of America. In an email to his staff, Pichai said the ban will affect at least 187 Google employees worldwide and that they are pained to see the personal impact of this executive order.

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Apple, Microsoft and other tech giants expressed dismay over the order the US tech industry relies on foreign engineers and other technical experts for a sizeable percentage of its workforce. An AP report quoted a forcefully blunt Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who said, “Trump’s actions are hurting Netflix employees around the world, and are so un-American it pains us all.” “Worse, these actions will make America less safe (through hatred and loss of allies) rather than more safe,” he wrote on Facebook. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg also criticized the order.

Google cofounder Sergey Brin at SFO protest: “I’m here because I’m a refugee.” (Photo from Matt Kang/Forbes) pic.twitter.com/GwhsSwDPLT

— Ryan Mac (@RMac18) January 29, 2017

The ban impacts several individuals, who have valid US visas and green cards and who traveled abroad for work or on personal visits. Trump’s move will have a major impact on American technology companies that hire staff from all over the world on H1-B visas, mostly used by Indian IT firms.

According to WSJ, there have already been reports of green card holders, who are allowed to work in the US, being prevented from getting on flights.