Apple CEO Tim Cook’s announcement Thursday that he was gay found support in many quarters, but in his native state of Alabama his announcement was met with less enthusiasm.
Reuters reported that in Alabama some people wished that he had kept the announcement to himself. Charles Murphy, mayor of Robertsdale, said he is proud of Cook’s achievements in the business world but would have preferred not to hear about his private affairs.
“Tim has done a good job with Apple. We’re very proud of the accomplishments that he’s made,” said Murphy, who ran without party affiliation. “Sometimes people’s personal lives need to stay personal.”
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, a Republican and opponent of same-sex marriage, said afterward that he objected to connections Cook drew in his induction speech between the civil rights movement and gay rights, the Anniston Star newspaper reported.
“I don’t connect those two, and in fact I don’t think the African American community connects those two either,” Bentley said, according to the newspaper.
Others contacted by Reuters, including church employees in Robertsdale and computer repair workers near Birmingham, declined to comment on Cook’s announcement.
