Mozilla on Thursday announced that co-founder Brendan Eich has elected to step down from his post as CEO following the recent controversy surrounding his appointment.
A blog post on the matter said Mozilla prides itself on being held to a different standard and, this past week, they didn't live up to it. Executive chairwoman Mitchell Baker said they know why people are hurt and angry and they are right: it's because they haven't stayed true to themselves. She goes on to say that while painful, the events of the last week show exactly why everyone needs the web.
It all started on March 25 when Mozilla's search for a new CEO ended with the appointment of JavaScript creator Brendan Eich. He was promoted to the position from CTO after nearly a year-long search when Gary Kovacs resigned in 2013.
Almost immediately, however, people voiced their disapproval over the fact that Eich donated $1,000 to support California's Proposition 8 campaign against same-sex marriage in April 2012. Even Mozilla employees were calling for him to step down.
A week later, dating site OkCupid posted a note on its homepage asking people not to use Mozilla software to access their site. As you can imagine, that created even more controversy and was likely enough to force change.
The foundation said the next step in leadership is still being discussed and they will have more information to share next week. Mozilla aims to emerge from the controversy with a renewed understanding and humility, Baker said.