On November 2nd, Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith "joked" about being in the front row of a public hanging while campaigning in a state that was the lynching capital of America. A day later, Google decided to give her $5,000 to bolster her runoff election against Black Democrat Mike Espy. 

Lynchings shaped the political landscape of America and their terroristic legacy continues to play an outsized role in Mississippi where they were used to drive Black farmers off their land, stop Black people from voting or being political actively, and to broadly terrorize us into accepting a subordinate place in society. This type of terrorism directed at Black communities is not just something from a bygone era either, just last year Jeremy Jerome Jackson was lynched in Jackson, MS.

In 2006, Google created their political action committee, Google NetPAC, to support candidates who share Google’s common values. Values we assume aligned with their motto of "don't be evil." But their $5,000 contribution to Hyde-Smith after she made these comments about ‘hanging’ in a state known for its violent history of racial terrorism is sick and an abdication of their moral authority. To fund a candidate pushing this brutal and degenerate rhetoric at a time when Black people, Jewish people and immigrants are still being targeted for violence by white nationalists, racists and our own government is absolutely shameful on Google's part.

We're demanding that Google take back their donation from Cindy Hyde-Smith and immediately layout a clearly defined values path for how they decide what candidates to fund. Candidates who engage in racist and white supremacist language and rhetoric, or support discriminatory policies should never receive financial support from Google. 

Here is the Petition:

Dear Sundar Pichai,

We demand that you ask Mississippi Senate candidate Cindy Hyde-Smith to return Google NetPAC's $5000 donation for her disgusting comments about public hangings.

Lynchings shaped the political landscape of America and their terroristic legacy continues to play an outsized role in Mississippi. Lynchings were used to drive Black farmers off their land, stop Black people from voting or being political actively, and to broadly terrorize us into accepting a subordinate place in society. As company that has defined itself around the idea of "don't be evil," supporting a candidate that makes light of this legacy of racial terrorism is an abdication of Google's moral authority.

To ensure Google never funds a candidate like this again, we call on you to immediately and publicly define a clear values path for giving to political candidates. Candidates who in engage in racist and white supremacist language and rhetoric, or support discriminatory policies should never receive financial support from Google.