It was announced earlier today that David L. Cohen, Comcast Corporation senior executive and vice president, will be stepping down from his daily duties at the end of this year. Word of Cohen’s departure came after Comcast CEO Brian Roberts sent an email out to employees.
This news comes after years of contention and legal battles between Comcast and Byron Allen, Founder/Chairman/CEO of Entertainment Studios, Inc., who publicly called out Comcast for discriminatory practices in business and issued a lawsuit against the cable giant in a case that has gone all the way to the Supreme Court.
Allen used the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which was created to protect Black people from discriminatory business practices, to prove that Comcast was indeed biased in his efforts to do business with them.
READ MORE: 5 tips for Black entrepreneurs from media mogul Byron Allen
“With David Cohen out of the way, this is a pivotal moment in the history and legacy of Comcast and Brian Roberts. Mr. Roberts and the Comcast board of directors should immediately rescind their petition in the U.S. Supreme Court challenging the civil rights of over 100 million Americans and sit down with staunch critics of Comcast/NBCUniversal — including myself, Robert Rodriguez, Sean Diddy Combs, Paula Madison, U.S. Senator Kamala Harris, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, U.S. Senator Cory Booker, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, U.S. Congressman Bobby Rush, Dr. Martin Luther King’s daughter Dr. Bernice King, the NAACP, and Gabrielle Union — to resolve the systemic and horrific racial issues at Comcast/NBCUniversal. With all of us working together, we can truly make this better for millions of Americans and Comcast/NBCUniversal,” said Allen in a statement issued to theGrio.
The Supreme Court is still pondering a decision on the case with a decision expected in Spring 2020.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Cohen has worked in several pivotal roles at Comcast for the past 18 years including communications, corporate administration, and diversity, and yet, the company has come under several allegations for wrongdoings when it comes to working with people of color.
READ MORE: Byron Allen arrives in Washington to take on Supreme Court
Even with this decision to step down, Cohen will not be completely removed from Comcast. As of 2020, he will become the new senior advisor to the CEO “continuing to provide advice and support to me and the other senior executives in the company,” Roberts wrote in the email and in a statement provided to the Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Thursday.
Comcast is considered the largest cable company in the nation.
TheGrio is owned and operated by Entertainment Studios, Inc.