Bon Appétit editor in chief, Adam Rapoport, resigned yesterday after a 2004 photo of him and his wife, Simone Shubuck, in brownface resurfaced on Twitter. He received widespread backlash from current and former employees who brought up instances of racial inequality within the brand.
Sohla El-Waylly, a chef and assistant food editor at Bon Appétit, wrote in her Instagram stories about the “systematic racism that runs rampant within Condé Nast as a whole.”
“I am 35-years-old and have over 15 years of professional experience,” she wrote. “I was hired as an assistant editor at $50k to assist mostly white editors with significantly less experience than me.”
“I’ve been pushed in front of video as a display of diversity. In reality, currently only white editors are paid for their video appearances,” she added. “None of the people of color have been compensated.”
Sources tell The New York Times that Rapoport had a call with staffers yesterday to apologize and got off the call to let them talk privately. Later in the day he went on Instagram to announce his resignation.
“I am stepping down as editor in chief of Bon Appétit to reflect on the work that I need to do as a human being and to allow Bon Appétit to get to a better place,” Rapoport wrote. “From an extremely ill-conceived Halloween costume 16 years ago to my blind spots as an editor, I’ve not championed an inclusive vision. I will do all I can to support that work, but I am not the one to lead that work. I am deeply sorry for my failings and to the position in which I put the editors of BA. Thank you.”
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Rapoport was an editor at GQ before joined Bon Appétit in 2010. He had been with Condé Nast for 20 years.
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