Opinion: Coinbase is a ‘mission focused company’
On Saturday, June 14, millions of Americans showed up to “No Kings” protests across the United States to voice their opposition to the United States’ perceived slide towards authoritarianism.
At the same time, thousands gathered for a military parade-cum-presidential birthday celebration in the nation’s capital.
This celebration of the United States military, a formidable fighting force that refuses the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court over its occasionally criminal conduct, doubled as a celebration of Donald Trump’s birthday.
This event was also sponsored by Coinbase.
Several years ago, Coinbase published a manifesto in which it decreed that it was a “mission-focused company” and stated, “We don’t advocate for any particular causes or candidates internally that are unrelated to our mission, because it is a distraction from our mission.”
Additionally, it assured people that it does not “Take on activism outside of our core mission at work.”
In the same document where it stated the limits it would respect, it also wanted to curtail political discussions inside the company, stating that employees of Coinbase will not “Debate causes or political candidates internally that are unrelated to work.”
Read more: Exclusive: Coinbase’s Conor Grogan on how he’s reuniting users with lost crypto
So it’s okay for Coinbase to sponsor an authoritarian celebration, but it’s not okay for a Coinbase employee to describe it that way.
Apparently, promoting the US military and the birthday of a president who repeatedly violated the Constitution is in line with these statements and somehow helps “create an open financial system for the world.”
This is the same president who cut off countries from the SWIFT network and who has unlawfully kidnapped and illegally rendered people beyond the borders of the state.
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