Apple CEO Tim Cook says 'I'm proud to be gay': What now and who cares?

Tim Cook, head of the wealthiest company in the world and one of the most powerful men in Silicon Valley, has for the first time publicly acknowledged that he is gay.

In an op-ed piece written for Bloomberg Businessweek, the Apple CEO says that he hopes his speaking up publicly about his sexual orientation can bring to light the discrimination continuously faced by the LGBT community and other minorities.

Cook aims to inspire others struggling to acknowledge their own sexuality and fight for equality in a society that is still marred by intolerance and abuse of individuals who do not identify with traditional male and female roles.

"If hearing that the CEO of Apple is gay can help someone struggling to come to terms with who he or she is, or bring comfort to anyone who feels alone, or inspire people to insist on their equality, then it's worth the trade-off with my own privacy," he says.

Cook says he has always "tried to maintain a basic level of privacy," never publicly acknowledging his sexuality but never denying it either. In some ways, his announcement did not seem like news to many people who constantly follow the business and technology media, which have often treated Cook's sexual orientation as an open secret and speculated about when he will officially talk about it. Cook himself says plenty of his colleagues at Apple know he is gay.

"It doesn't seem to make a difference in the way they treat me," he says. "Of course, I've had the good fortune to work at a company that loves creativity and innovation and knows it can only flourish when you embrace people's differences. Not everyone is so lucky."

What's remarkable here, and what will become one of the watershed moments that will define not just corporate America but the country's entire history, is not the fact that Tim Cook is gay. It's the fact that Tim Cook is the first leader of a Fortune 500 company who is open about his sexuality and proud of it.

"So let me be clear: I'm proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me," he says.

Plenty of other chief executives, business leaders and prominent individuals from Bill Clinton to Ellen Degeneres have lauded Cook for it.

On Wall Street, investors didn't even bat an eye over Cook's announcement, with Apple's stock prices taking a slight 0.09 percent rise to $107.08 in after hours trading. It was business as usual for America's financial center, which has gone a long way from its homophobic days when bankers suspected of being gay were called "faggots" and other derogatory names.

In an ideal world, Cook's announcement would have been the non-announcement it was on Wall Street because, in that world, people are fully tolerant and welcoming of people who have different sexual orientations. However, we are still a far cry from the society that acknowledges and accepts the LGBT community and also other minorities with a different worldview.

Time magazine's Daniel D'Addario describes it best when he said Tim Cook has set a new paradigm, one where he describes his sexuality as a central aspect of himself and not just something to entertain the press or get over with talking about.

"Being gay has given me a deeper understanding of what it means to be in the minority and provided a window into the challenges that people in other minority groups deal with every day," Cook says. "It's made me more empathetic, which has led to a richer life."

In 2013, Cook penned an article for The Wall Street Journal urging Congress to support a bill that protects workers from sexual discrimination policies and practices in the workplace. His recent announcement isn't as direct as that op-ed piece, but the fact that Cook chose Bloomberg Businessweek, a business publication read mainly by middle-aged, mostly male management professionals sends a telling message to the business world: Embrace an open workplace that welcomes diversity and encourages people to express who they truly are.

In a study conducted by consulting firm Deloitte, researchers found that around 83 percent of people who are gay, lesbian and bisexual do not disclose aspects of their identity in the workplace.

According to the study, workers do this for fear of discrimination from their coworkers and bosses and because acknowledging their sexuality may hurt their career. Others cited Cook's reason: keeping their privacy.

Fear was certainly the reason former BP CEO John Browne resigned from his office in 2007 after a former lover leaked out to a tabloid that he was gay. That fear isn't unfounded, especially in the 29 states where companies can still legally fire employees on the basis of their sexual orientation. Included in these is Cook's home state of Alabama, which he recently criticized for being "too slow" in addressing the rights of the LGBT community.

Cook's first public acknowledgement of his sexuality has set a new precedent and will likely encourage executives and other people to step out and not be afraid of acknowledging theirs. It already has.

"I remember my dad telling me, 'You'll never amount to anything'," says Fred Sainz, vice president of communications and marketing at the Human Rights Campaign, when he openly admitted he was gay in 1998. "Today, I would have been able to tell him: Well, if you think that 'nothing' is a senator or Apple CEO, then you're right."