George Floyd protests hit Reddit as co-founder Alexis Ohanian quits to pave way for a black candidate
Alexis Ohanian, the Reddit co-founder husband of ace tennis player Serena Williams has stepped down from his company’s board because of a moral responsibility towards the black community. The 37-year-old came up with a video uploaded on his Instagram page on Friday, June 5, in which he said he was quitting “for me, for my family, and for my country” so that his seat could be filled by a black candidate and he can concentrate on helping in curbing racial hate, something Reddit as been accused of not doing enough on its platform. Ohanian called himself a “father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: 'What did you do?” Ohanian married Serena in 2017 and the duo has a daughter named Alexis Olympian Ohanian Jr, aged two.
Ohanian’s move came in the wake of his company facing a backlash this week after writing to staff members addressing the Black Lives Matter protests over the brutal killing of George Floyd at the hands of the police in Minneapolis last month. The firm has been accused of showing dual standards on the question of racism. While Ellen Pao, a former CEO of Reddit, slammed the company saying it “monetizes white supremacy”, two of its biggest subreddits staged a blackout and asked the leadership to step down if it didn’t take on the platform’s alleged bigotry. "Reddit has harbored racists as policy for years /u/spez. It has led to battling racism constantly, increased by the kneeling that encompassed Black Lives Matter's message," a message on NFL subreddit read.
“Fifteen years ago I co-founded Reddit as a place for people to find community and a sense of belonging. It is long overdue to do the right thing. I'm doing this for me, for my family, and for my country. I’m saying this as a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: 'What did you do?’” Ohanian said in the video.
After Ohanian requested his replacement with a black candidate, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman, who once was his college roommate, said the company would “honor” his request and is working in its content policy to deal with racist speech on its platform, Reuters reported. Ohanian also said that he would use the future gains on his Reddit stock to serve the black community mainly to “curb racial hate”. He said he was starting with a pledge of $1 million to Colin Kaepernick’s ‘Know Your Rights’ campaign.
“I believe resignation can actually be an act of leadership from people in power right now. To everyone fighting to fix our broken nation: do not stop,” he added. Ohanian’s step came at a time when the US’ corporate bodies too are facing debates over the diversity and content moderation practices on social media that they follow. Williams, an African-American, said on Twitter that she was “proud” of her husband. “So proud of your commitment to not just me but to “us”," she wrote on Twitter while retweeting her husband's post. In another tweet, she wrote: “Having diverse views on any boards is important. So proud of you Alexis. I know Olympia will be too.”
Reddit ex-CEO says company 'monetizes white supremacy'
Ohanian stepped down just days after Pao lashed out at the social media company after it came up with an open letter to its staff members condemning racism after Floyd’s death on May 25. On Tuesday, June 2, she took to Twitter to say the company “'nurtures and monetizes white supremacy and hate all day long”. “I am obligated to call you out: You should have shut down r/the_donald instead of amplifying it and its hate, racism, and violence. So much of what is happening now lies at your feet,” Pao, an American of Taiwanese descent who served as Reddit’s interim CEO in 2014-15, tweeted.
“We do not tolerate hate, racism, and violence, and while we have work to do to fight these on our platform, our values are clear,” Huffman wrote in the letter dated June 1.