Introduction

On Thursday, Brendan Eich was forced to resign after two weeks as chief executive of the technology company Mozilla because he donated $1,000 to support a 2008 California ballot measure to ban same-sex marriage. Many supporters of gay rights, inside and outside the company, said his presence was a slap in the face, and threatened a boycott.

Should executives be held to account for unpopular or even offensive views, or does such a stand repress free speech?