While I don't agree with the CEOs statement, I think people should be allowed to hire whoever they want. The trouble with this is that a set of biases can beco

While I don't agree with the CEOs statement, I think people should be allowed to hire whoever they want. The trouble with this is that a set of biases can become near-universal. I have the right to associate (or not) with whoever I choose. But if everyone (or nearly everyone) choose not to associate with people from a particular group, that is harmful to society[1]. So, there are exceptions made to your freedom of association. IIRC these exceptions only apply to companies with more than 50 employees, which seems a decent balance between "we're all friends here" small/family businesses (individual rights win) vs "you are a cog in a wheel" megacorps (the good of society wins). [1] For example, I understand that people refusing to hire ex-convicts is a significant contributor to recidivism.