Google Offices Support Referendum 71

Representatives for the Google offices in Seattle and Kirkland, Wash., sent a letter to the editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on Tuesday expressing their support for Referendum 71, the ballot initiative that would uphold a Washington State law that expands domestic-partnership rights for same-sex couples.

The letter, signed by the engineering and site director for each office, represented a rare foray into policy outside information technology, according to the writers, who said the issues surrounding domestic partnerships were "so important and so clear cut."

"To be clear, we respect the strongly held beliefs that people have on both sides of this argument," wrote Brian Bershad and Scott Silver, according to Post-Intelligencer reporter Nick Eaton. "Nevertheless, we see this debate as one that comes down to equality, plain and simple. If we believe in equal protection under the law we must, in our view, support a man or woman's right to enjoy the legal benefits of domestic partnerships -- no matter whom they love."

Google joins other companies that support Referendum 71, including Nike, Puget Sound Energy, RealNetworks, and Vulcan.

Read the letter from Google here.