Over the weekend, Haute 100 lister Tim Cook was honored at the 19th annual Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, national dinner. At the dinner, which took place in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, Cook received the Visibility Award, an accolade given to high-profile LGBT individuals whom the group believes make for positive role models.
Cook was chosen for boldly living his truth.
In a press release, Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said, ”Tim Cook is a visionary whose leadership of Apple has been nothing short of remarkable. His willingness to bravely and directly speak his truth has not only given hope to countless people around the world, it has saved lives. Through his example and Apple’s commitment to equality, LGBT young people in particular can look to Tim Cook’s incredible career and know that there is nothing holding them back. They can dream as big as their minds allow them to, even if they want to be the CEO of one of the world’s largest companies. HRC is honored to welcome Tim to our National Dinner.”
Cook addressed the crowd, where he said, ”People need to hear that being gay does not give you limitations in life.”
The Apple CEO opened up about his sexual orientation in 2014. In a Bloomberg Business column Cook wrote, “For years, I’ve been open with many people about my sexual orientation. Plenty of colleagues at Apple know I’m gay, and it doesn’t seem to make a difference in the way they treat me. 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. Not everyone is so lucky. While I have never denied my sexuality, I haven’t publicly acknowledged it either, until now. So let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me.”
Others who attended the star-studded dinner includes Vice President Joe Bidden, who gave the keynote address.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons
