T-Mobile, the third-largest telecommunications company in the nation, told its 53,000 employees that they must adhere to an “anti-racist” ideology, according to a slew of emails from top executives and training course materials obtained by The Daily Wire.
Following the death of George Floyd, Executive Vice President of Consumer Markets Jon Freier, a white man, sent an email to T-Mobile’s 74%-minority workforce informing them that they must become “anti-racist” because “it’s not enough to simply feel good that you don’t contribute to racism.”
“Allies have realized that it’s not enough to not be racist. You have to actually be anti-racist,” Freier said. “Being neutral is actually part of the problem.”
Freier told employees and storefront owners that it is important to be “respectful” of different viewpoints, seemingly including those that call for burning and looting. The executive vice president said in one email that employees should respect the belief that it’s appropriate to “burn this whole place down.”
“I want to be respectful about different points of view here. Some people believe that the only way we get meaningful change in this country is to burn this whole place down,” Freier said. “If you believe that’s outrageous, I’m telling you I’ve gotten feedback from reasonable people who believe that … What I know is that this violence is not random. It’s important to remember why this is happening.”
T-Mobile was particularly impacted by the Black Lives Matter riots that took place between May 31 and June 8, 2020. Insurance specialists have estimated the riots caused billions of dollars in damages. CEO Mike Sievert acknowledged in an email that “dozens of our stores in cities nationwide have been significantly damaged, burned, and looted.”
In Royal Palm Beach, Florida, a minority storefront owner told local news that he was “hurt” and “frustrated” after looters ransacked his store and caused $50,000 to $60,000 in damage. Business owner Salim Minek told WPTV that the looters “pretty much destroyed the whole store.”
The property destruction added to the store owner’s existing financial stress caused by the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. T-Mobile’s CEO promised to “repair and rebuild” the stores “over time.”
The company’s human resources officer Deeanna King, a white woman, also sent an email to employees encouraging them to read The New York Times’ ahistorical “1619 Project” and “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander. Suggested videos included Boston University professor and “anti-racist” scholar Ibram X. Kendi explaining the difference between racism and “antiracism” on CBS News.
King also seemed to indicate that black Americans face more racism than other minority groups.
“Many groups are the target of racism, however, we need to acknowledge the danger the Black community faces on a daily basis from the racism in our society,” King’s email read.
According to an email from Freier about Hispanic Heritage Month, 30% of T-Mobile’s employees are Hispanic.
T-Mobile upped its “commitment” to diversity, equity, and inclusion in 2021 by offering leadership training that was apparently for black employees only. The company promised to send two “Black leaders” to the “Black Leadership Academy,” which is offered through the consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
A whistleblower within T-Mobile told The Daily Wire that he was concerned that the company was violating the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) rules on prohibited employment practices.
“It is illegal for a training or apprenticeship program to discriminate on the bases of race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information,” the EEOC website reads. “For example, an employer may not deny training opportunities to African-American employees because of their race.”
T-Mobile executives did not respond to requests for comment.