Reddit Co-Founder Condemns University of Virginia President's Resignation Following Trump Pressure: 'DEI Witchhunt'

One of the co-founders of social media platform Reddit has expressed outrage at the resignation of the University of Virginia President, which was spurred by the Trump administration.

Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian took to social media to express indignation and disappointment after University of Virginia President Jim Ryan announced that he would be resigning at a UVA Board of Visitors meeting on Friday.

"Jim is a tremendous leader; this is a very sad day for @UVA. 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?" he wrote. "It's a public university and the state of Virginia is 20% Black and less than 8% of the student body is Black."

"Counting on all those principled Republicans to speak up about this — right?" he continued.

"I get it — resignation can be an act of protest — so I really hope more UVA Alums speak up on this," Ohanian wrote in a separate post, commenting directly on Ryan's resignation letter.

Social media users took to online platforms to echo Ohanian's sentiments, stating that Ryan was loved by the community at UVA and expressing anger at his forced resignation.

"They are silencing everyone and make it impossible for those hanging on to fight!" said one user.

"A tremendous leader and a truly good man. I hope he knows how loved he was by the real UVA community and that the spirit under which the University was founded and has operated since is able to spark something in whatever/whoever comes next. Sad day for the Wahoos," wrote another.

"Thank you for speaking out, Alexis. @wahoos4uva was formed to protect UVA from political interference like this. We need more voices like yours standing with us!" commented a third.

"100%. A very sad day for UVa and all of higher education," added a fourth.

"Thank you for speaking up. He's a remarkable leader and made UVA better in so many ways!" said another.

Ryan's resignation announcement spurred an impromptu demonstration by students and faculty who gathered at the college president's residence at Carr's Hill.

"I appreciate you being here. I appreciate your support," 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."

The Justice Department had repeatedly targeted the University, warning senior staff within its administration to cease race-based treatment on campus, which the department reportedly had been receiving complaints of.

"Time is running short, and the department's patience is wearing thin," said a June 17 letter.

Originally published on Latin Times