San Jose protests at Microsoft on Earth Day

On Earth Day, April 18, over 20 activists from groups like San Jose Against War gathered outside the Microsoft office in Mountain View, California, to protest the company's involvement in what they termed Israel's genocide in Palestine, ICE's deportation operations, and the ecological damage caused by its AI data centers. Protestors carried signs calling for San Jose to divest from both Alphabet and Microsoft, chanting "Free Palestine" and "Microsoft you can't hide, you're committing genocide!" Jack McCann of San Jose Against War highlighted Microsoft's alleged role in providing digital infrastructure to Israel, asserting that it enables the collection and storage of data crucial to human rights abuses. Nassim Nouri of the Santa Clara County Green Party criticized corporations like Microsoft for prioritizing profit over people and the planet. Marcel Knightly emphasized that the issue extends beyond data centers and contracts, pointing to a system where corporations profit from war and extraction, leading working-class communities to sacrifice resources like water and electricity. Philip Nguyen of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization linked the climate crisis and wars to the capitalist system, advocating for a unified movement against corporations and politicians. The protest also commemorated Palestinian Prisoners Day, and John Duroyan from SJSU's Students for a Democratic Society connected the climate struggle with anti-war efforts, noting SJSU's collaboration with Alphabet on an "AI Center for Social Good" that students plan to mobilize against.