Alexis Ohanian Recounts Serena Williams’s Life-Threatening Childbirth to Highlight Systemic Issues
When it comes to his family, Serena Williams’s businessman husband, Alexis Ohanian, knows no limitations. Known to be a devoted father to their daughter Olympia, Ohanian has previously recalled the challenges Serena faced during childbirth. Embracing parenthood wholeheartedly, Ohanian has also spoken out about the flaws in the healthcare system. Now a proud father of two, Ohanian reflects on how his company helped him navigate parenthood more easily than others.
Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian recently joined Rainn Wilson on his podcast to discuss having a child during his Reddit days, his wife’s challenging pregnancy journey, and more. “We experienced the version of it (talking about pregnancy scares with Rainn Wilson) with Serena’s health scare when Olympia was born. And yes, we are very fortunate to live in a country where we have quite modernized healthcare over the years, and it is still, to your point, a very serious issue. There is a tremendous amount of risk disproportionately so for women of color, but like a tremendous amount of risk period,” said Ohanian. He recalled the horrifying moment during Serena’s first childbirth.
Williams has a disease called pulmonary embolism, which creates blood clots in a blood vessel that can travel to the lung’s artery, forming a blockage. Right after Olympia’s birth, Williams faced severe complications from this disease. The nurses, however, were too reluctant to respond to her needs, making it a life-threatening situation for Williams. On Channing Chowder’s Pivot Podcast, Ohanian spoke about how he had to request the nurses to pay attention to his wife’s condition during childbirth.
Ohanian also discussed the importance of paternity leave. “I came out of that very lucky because I owned this was when I was at Reddit and I had a paternity leave plan. I could be basically all hands on deck for my partner during that time,” said Ohanian. He highlighted that paternity leave for fathers in the United States depends on various factors. Despite the Family and Medical Leave Act guaranteeing 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for new parents, it also depends on the employer’s policy. Because Reddit had a supportive policy, Ohanian was able to be with his family and help Serena during her critical post-pregnancy journey.
Ohanian’s revelations underscore how gender roles impact such policies in the country. In 2020, he wrote an article in the New York Times discussing the stigma surrounding paternity leave. “Men are conditioned to be breadwinners exclusively, so off to work we go. Our sense of duty is often fear-based: Men assume their bosses will frown on paternity leave, so we don’t dare to go there,” wrote Ohanian. He referenced a study by PL+US, a national paid-leave advocacy group, which found that 84 percent of expectant fathers plan to take leave, but only half believe their employer supports them. Nearly a third of dads think that taking leave could negatively impact their career.
Alexis Ohanian’s insights shed light on the challenges new fathers face when trying to support their families during critical times. His modern approach to taking full care of his wife and child makes him a role model for many. Ohanian’s dedication to his family and his willingness to speak out about systemic issues highlight his commitment to both personal and societal improvement.
