Linda Johnson Rice, the publisher of
Ebony and Jet, endorsed gay marriage in a Valentine's
Day op-ed published in the Chicago
Tribune.
“I have always drawn strength from my
late mother's life,” Rice wrote. “When Eunice Johnson set up the
first major fashion show for African-American audiences more than 50
years ago, she did so at a time when black Americans, especially
black women, were still fighting for a seat at the table, any table.”
Rice added that her thoughts were with
her mother when Jet began featuring same-sex couples in 2011.
“When the December magazine hit
newsstands, I received dozens of calls wondering whether our readers
or advertisers protested. You know what? Not one did. They
celebrated right along with us because they were celebrating fairness
and equality.”
“Yet if the couples we featured
walked into an Illinois courthouse and tried to get a marriage
license, they'd be turned away. … For these couples, they can't
show their true colors in the way my mother believed was absolutely
essential.”
Jet and Ebony are
published by Johnson Publishing Company, which is headquartered in
Chicago. Rice serves as its chairman.
The endorsement arrived on the same day
that Illinois
senators voted for a marriage equality bill and sent it to the
House.