James Damore was fired after his 10-page document, which expressed that women were inferior to men when it comes to writing software, was made public. In an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, “Why I Was Fired by Google,” Damore said that Google is “a particularly intense echo chamber because it is in the middle of Silicon Valley and is so life-encompassing as a place to work.”

“Some even live on campus. For many, including myself, working at Google is a major part of their identity, almost like a cult with its own leaders and saints, all believed to righteously uphold the sacred motto of ‘Don’t be evil,'” the op-ed read.

Damore argued that this created an environment where only certain opinions could be voiced. Damore added that his firing “neatly confirms that point.”