Serena Williams’ Husband Alexis Ohanian Resigns From Reddit to Give His Seat to a ‘Black Candidate’
In the wake of George Floyd’s death, Serena Williams‘ husband, Alexis Ohanian, decided to resign “as a member of the Reddit board” so he could give his seat to someone of color.
“I urged them to fill my seat with a black candidate, [and] I will use future gains on my Reddit stock to serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate, and I’m starting with a pledge of $1M to @kaepernick7’s @yourrightscamp,” Ohanian, 37, wrote via Twitter on Friday, June 5.
I’ve resigned as a member of the reddit board, I have urged them to fill my seat with a black candidate, + I will use future gains on my Reddit stock to serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate, and I’m starting with a pledge of $1M to @kaepernick7’s @yourrightscamp
— Alexis Ohanian Sr. 🚀 (@alexisohanian) June 5, 2020
In another post, he said, “I cofounded @reddit 15 years ago to help people 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.”
Ohanian, who shares a 2-year-old baby girl with the tennis pro, said he made his decision as “a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: ‘What did you do?'” He added, “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.”
In 2005, the entrepreneur cofounded Reddit with web developer Steve Huffman. With their leadership, the site quickly became one of the most popular websites in the world. In a September 2019 interview with epsnW, Ohanian gushed about working on Reddit amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I am fortunate because I love the work that I do, it’s a nice grounding of normalcy when everything else had been turned upside down,” he explained. However, the dad of one also noted it’s been hard for him to juggle his work and family life when he has a small child at home.
“It’s a constant struggle,” Ohanian said. “Even now, with our daughter being 2, it’s a constant struggle to try to feel like I’m showing up enough for her and my wife. I know my wife feels the same way. This is the new normal.” But now that he’s resigned from Reddit, Ohanian will have a lot more time to spend with his daughter.
For more information, visit Blacklivesmatter.com.
