News
Grazia sacks contributing editor over 'ignorant and antisemitic' tweets
The fashion magazine has let go of Stephanie Yeboah, who had been hired to champion diversity
October 12, 2020 09:28
The fashion magazine has let go of Stephanie Yeboah, who had been hired to champion diversity
October 12, 2020 09:28Grazia has sacked a contributing editor charged with championing diversity after a series of recent antisemitic tweets came to light.
The fashion magazine announced that Stephanie Yeboah would “no longer be writing as a contributing editor” following an internal review.
Ms Yeboah was found by the Private Eye to have written a series of questionable tweets in recent years, including one in which she joked that “Every Jew has an attic, but not every attic has Jews”.
In another she wrote: “AUSCHWITZ Gas Chamber Music LMAO SMH [laughing my arse off, shaking my head]”.
After the tweets came to light, Ms Yeboah publicly apologised for her “ignorant and antisemitic comments”.
Grazia said in a statement that “[f]ollowing an internal review, we have agreed that Stephanie will no longer be writing as a Contributing Editor of Grazia, we will continue to support her as she further educates herself in collaboration with the Jewish community.
“Grazia continues to champion diversity and inclusion of all kinds and stands firmly against antisemitism.”
Commenting on its own involvement, the Board of Deputies said they had contacted Ms Yeboah, and that the engagement had been “very positive.
“Stephanie has now deleted all the tweets, has assured us she is currently working to address all the concerns in full, and we will meet her soon to discuss all these issues further.”
In January this year, which marked 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz, Ms Yeboah wrote that “[t]here have been bigger and more horrific genocides. They happened to brown people though, so I guess it doesn’t matter, huh?”
She later added: “I know what the occasion is and I’m doubling down on what I said. Of course it’s tragic, but the erasure of brown trauma is a real issue.”
She continued: “Lol of course it matters when Jews are killed. Nothing else matters more. We learn about it in school. It’s *THEE* most important thing. But it also discounts the other absolutely despicable things that have happened. So pls don’t play the oppression card here.”
Apologising for the tweets, Ms Yeboah wrote: “To plead ignorance is no excuse, I should have known better than to make these kind of comments about events which remain a source of unimaginable trauma for the Jewish community.”
Addressing the comments made in January this year, she said she had wanted to highlight how tragedies of “black and brown bodies weren’t given as much visibility due to the colour of our skin”.
She noted: “I was pitting these two marginalised communities against each other, and for that, I am extremely sorry. I can’t express nor apologise enough for the hurt and harm my tweets have caused.”
Ms Yeboah pledged to meet the Board of Deputies to “begin this journey of educating myself further.”
