'Bon Appetit' editor-in-chief steps down after 'brown face' controversy

Bon Appétit magazine editor-in-chief, Adam Rapoport filed for his resignation after a photo of him and his wife from Halloween in 2013 sparked controversy on social media.

The image in question resurfaced after a food writer uploaded the photo on Twitter, which was originally uploaded by Rapoport’s wife, Simone Shubuck on Instagram.

After it had garnered the attention and condemnation by the community, the post was then taken down. In the photo, Rapoport and his wife are dressed as stereotypes of Puerto Ricans.

“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 a better place.

“From an extremely ill-conceived Halloween costume sixteen years ago to my blind spots as an editor, I’ve not championed an inclusive vision,” Rapoport wrote on his Instagram today.

Prior to the resignation, Sohla El Waylly, an assistant editor at Bon Appétit wrote in an Instagram story she is “angry and disgusted,” responding to the brown face photo of Rapoport that has been circulating throughout social media.

She also came forward and expressed the internal issues that have gone on in the company of how only white editors are paid for their video appearances.

“I’ve been pushed in front of a video as a display of diversity,” she added.

“In reality currently only white editors are paid for their video appearances. None of the people of colour have been compensated,” she stated.

According to the New York Times, Bon Appétit, a popular US food magazine under a major publication house, Condé Nast, has been getting widespread criticisms over its poor treatments of several communities including African-American, Indigenous, People of Colour (BIPOC) and its representation of food from various cultures.

Many of Bon Appetit’s staff members including Andy Baraghani, Claire Saffitz, Priya Krishna and Carla Laili Music pledged to not appear in any of Bon Appétit’s videos until the people of colour who appear in the videos are fairly compensated.

Prior to taking the reign of Bon Appétit’s editor-in-chief in 2010, Rapoport was style editor at GQ magazine, another Condé Nast publication. He has also worked as editor for Time Out New York and wrote for James Beard Foundation’s Publications Office.

This came a few days after the resignation of James Bennet, the editorial page director of the New York Times magazine after a backlash over the publishing of an opinion piece by Tom Cotton, a junior senator, advocating the use of military force against civilian protesters.

On a similar note, another editor-in-chief of a prominent magazine, Christene Barberich from Refinery 29 has also resigned after staff members spoke out about racism they faced at the company.

READ: New York Times opinion editor resigns after column controversy