Facebook could be seeing some internal unrest following the firm’s decision to sponsor an event featuring Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Business Insider reports that tech giant Facebook is sponsoring an event that features Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh as a speaker, a risky move that could see internal unrest at the firm and has already sparked employee protests. It was recently reported by the political newsletter Popular Information that Facebook will be a “gold sponsor” for a convention by the conservative law group the Federalist Society, at which Kavanaugh is speaking. Kavanaugh faced allegations of sexual misconduct after being nominated to the Supreme Court by President Trump. Joel Kaplan, Facebook’s VP of global public policy, received criticism within the firm after he appeared in the audience at the hearing in support of Kavanaugh whom he had been friends with when they both worked at the White House during the George W. Bush administration.
At the time, many employees were angered by Kaplan’s appearance calling it “inappropriate.” One employee reportedly stated: “I might feel uncomfortable sharing the workplace with this person now.” Facebook stated that its sponsorship of the Federalist Society event is part of its efforts to support groups across the political spectrum and has supported the group since 2013.
