Tim Cook, the chief executive of the world’s largest tech company, has finally announced publicly that he is gay and he is proud of it.
Cook never denied it, but he had never publicly acknowledged his sexual orientation until a Bloomberg Businessweek essay published this morning. He wrote that many of his Apple colleagues already know that he is gay and that doesn’t change how they treat him.
“Of course, I’ve had the good fortune to work at a company that loves creativity and innovation and knows it can only flourish when you embrace people’s differences,” Cook wrote. “Not everyone is so lucky.”
Cook later wrote that he is “proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.”
He also explained how being gay has provided him with a different perspective on life, helping him understand the challenges other minorities face. It has “made me more empathetic, which has led to a richer life,” he noted. “It’s been tough and uncomfortable at times, but it has given me the confidence to be myself, to follow my own path, and to rise above adversity and bigotry.”
Also in his essay, Cook noted that Apple has fought for human rights and supports marriage equality. In the workplace, they have also promoted equality to encourage LGBT candidates to work for them.
According to The New York Times, Cook is now the most high-profile gay man in the business world, although he’s not the only one. A recent study did find that most gay, lesbian or bisexual people do not tell their co-workers about their sexual identity, so he is a rarity in that regard.