Serena Williams' husband Alexis Ohanian slams 'DEI witchhunt' as UVA president resigns amid pressure from Donald Trump's administration

Tennis legend Serena Williams' husband and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian was disappointed to learn about Jim Ryan's resignation as President of the University of Virginia (UVA) following intense pressure from the Trump-era Justice Department.

The Trump administration has accused UVA of negotiating in “bad faith” to dismantle its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs. On Thursday, The Athletic reported that the DOJ has asked for Ryan's resignation. In his resignation letter, Ryan mentioned that he would have stepped down at the end of the next academic year, but “given the circumstances and today’s conversations,” he had decided to do it now.

UVA's Larry Sabato confirmed the development on his X account, writing,

"UVA President Jim Ryan has resigned under pressure from Trump's White House and DOJ & some Youngkin appointees on UVA BOV."

Ohanian reacted under this post, calling Ryan "a tremendous leader" and lamenting "a very sad day for @UVA." Ohanian was also critical of the DOJ's federal campaigns targeting public institutions — including Columbia and Harvard — to eliminate DEI initiatives.

"Jim is a tremendous leader; this is a very sad day for @UVA," Ohanian wrote. "The University hasn't just been a consistently great academic program under his tenure, it's ranked NUMBER ONE in Free Speech by FIRE ... And all because of a DEI witchhunt? It's a public university and the state of Virginia is 20% Black and less than 8% of the student body is Black."

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UVA campus getting behind Jim Ryan following his resignation

Students, faculty and alumni have rallied at the Rotunda, chanting "We want Jim," and "Death to tyrants," defending Jim Ryan and DEI values. The former president acknowledged the support and said he will do everything in his power to make UVA "the best place it can be."

“I appreciate you being here. I appreciate your support,” Mr. Ryan told the crowd. “And regardless of my role, I will continue to do whatever I can to support this place and continue to make it the best place it can be. And I would ask that you all do the same.”

Ryan has also found support from Democrats. Virginia’s Democratic senators, including Tim Kaine, called the episode “outrageous.” It remains to be seen how things unravel with other such universities.

Edited by Pratham K Sharma