Medium is giving employees Friday off to participate in a national strike to protest ICE

Hustle culture maybe It will be the norm In technology companies in the age of artificial intelligence, but work will stop tomorrow when the Medium Makers platform is published. Medium CEO Tony Stubblebine is giving his employees permission to take time off to share tomorrow A nationwide general strike In protest against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

The activists behind the general strike are Contact For “No Work, No School, No Shopping” amid a campaign to stop funding ICE, which has escalated raids in American cities, Resulting in the killing of several people Including US citizens earlier this month in Minneapolis.

In a Slack message subscriber Today with mid-level employees, Stubblebine says all employees are free to participate in the strike as they see fit.

“Whether or not you want to take a full day off work, do a part-day work, or direct your work toward something that seems consistent with the goals of the strike, is up to you,” he wrote in a public announcement channel.

The CEO explained that Medium is not “in the business of dictating people’s policies,” so the choice to participate was an individual, not a corporate mandate.

Naturally, the publishing platform plays an important role in helping people share news, opinions, insights and analysis on politics, culture and other topics. To be able to allow its employees to take the day off to protest, Stubblebine said Medium will coordinate with the necessary teams to ensure a “business continuity” plan is in place on Friday.

Technology leaders, including Google DeepMind chief scientist Jeff Dean, were as well Outright protest against ICE. However, many major technology companies and executives have spent the past few weeks Flirting service With the Trump administration. Some executives – incl Apple CEO Tim Cook – She was criticized for Attend the show From the Amazon MGM Studios documentary “Melania” on the day federal immigration agents shot and killed ICU nurse Alex Peretti in Minneapolis.

Meanwhile, many high-ranking technology employees are struggling He demanded that ICE and CBP move out of American citiesAs proven In the open letter signed by More than 500 employees in the technology industry.

Stubblebine appears to share this view, writing that Medium has a responsibility to “clarify its position,” especially “given that many other tech organizations are donating to the Trump campaign.” He also said the Medium product exists to help “elevate truth and diverse voices,” not hateful or racist content.

His letter also reiterated Medium’s support for DEI, the host of pro-diversity policies that the Trump administration has tried to dismantle through executive orders, eliminating DEI positions in the federal workforce, eliminating curriculum, legal targeting, and more.

“Our business thrives when the country thrives, so for us to be there is good for our mission,” Stubblebine said.