IBM recently apologized to a pioneer in the field of computer engineering who is transgender – 52 years after she was fired.
Forbes magazine first reported the story about Lynn Conway, 82.
IBM fired Conway after she disclosed that she was transgender.
“Long before becoming a highly respected professor at the University of Michigan, Conway was a young researcher with IBM. It was there, on August 29, 1968, that IBM’s CEO fired her for reasons that are illegal today. Nearly 52 years later, in an act that defines its present-day culture, IBM apologized and sought forgiveness,” wrote Jeremy Alicandri for Forbes.
The story has since been picked up internationally, including reports in The New York Times and New York Post.
“I struggled to hold back tears,” Lynn Conway told Forbes magazine of the apology.
IBM honored Conway with an online ceremony recently.
“The apology came as Conway was awarded an IBM Lifetime Achievement Award by Diane Gherson, the company’s Senior Vice President of Human Resources,” The Posted noted.
“It was so unexpected,” Conway said in an interview with The New York Times. “It was stunning.”
Read the full story at Forbes.
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