black models
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Model Slick Woods May Be Fighting Cancer—but She's Nobody's Victim
In her characteristically irreverent style, on Tuesday, model-actress Slick Woods made another stunning reveal. This time, she seemed to announce a cancer battle (h/t Madame Noire), posting a group photo on Instagram with the cryptic caption: “How I feel about chemotherapy, shout out to everyone that gotta go through it. #atleastimalreadybald” While no further details…
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'I Won’t Do an All-Black Show': Naomi Campbell Talks Representation, Reputation, Racism and Why Meghan Markle Is Right to Defend Herself
“We just want balance, end of story,” says Naomi Campbell in a recent interview with the Guardian. Long one of the few black “supers” (as in supermodels), in recent years, Campbell, in partnership with fellow fashion legends Iman and Bethann Hardison, has become an advocate for diversity in the fashion industry. This followed decades of…
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So, Let's Talk About That Time Elle Germany Reduced Black Models to a Fashion Trend…
With that headline and Elle Germany’s proclamation that we’re going “Back to Black” this season, you might be wondering why you’re looking at a cover featuring Danish model Gertrud Hegelund—likely a lovely person, but by no means a black one. Or perhaps you’re wondering why we’re making a fuss, since Elle must’ve been talking about…
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'This Would’ve Not Happened to a White Model': Australian Magazine Messily Misidentifies Model Adut Akech
She has opened and closed runway shows for Chanel and Valentino, is on the cover of three global editions of Vogue this September alone and is considered one of the faces pushing black beauty ever forward, but Adut Akech Bior (best known in the fashion world as Adut Akech) recently suffered a major indignity on…
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Senior Slay: JoAni Johnson, 68, Proves Ageless Beauty, Grace and Power
JoAni Johnson stands only five feet, four-and-a-half inches tall, making her too short for most runways. Not to mention, at age 68 Johnson would likely be considered too old by most industry insiders. Yet the stunning beauty is defying industry norms by being one of the hottest models in the game right now. Johnson told…
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'Change the Game': Halima Aden Makes Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue History in a Hijab
Halima Aden has been changing the game since 2016, when she became the first contestant in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant to wear a hijab—and made it to the semifinals. In the years since, the Somali refugee-turned-burgeoning supermodel has been lighting up runways and magazine covers alike, reinforcing the fact that modesty can be glamorous,…
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Leomie Anderson Just Became the Newest Victoria's Secret Angel to Get Her Wings
To say we have issues with Victoria’s Secret would be an understatement. The lingerie brand we grew up with has been repeatedly slow to do some growing up of its own in recent years, ignoring an increasingly inclusive fashion industry, and justifying their reluctant to adapt by saying certain models—including plus and trans women—just don’t…
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'My Choice': With a Series of All Black, All Hijabi April Covers, Vogue Arabia Demystifies Muslim Modesty
“I think it’s important to remember that wearing a hijab is a woman’s personal choice. It doesn’t make her any better or worse than another Muslim woman. To me, it symbolizes modesty and gives me a sense of power,” supermodel Halima Aden tells Vogue Arabia. Aden, a groundbreaking Muslim model who has become a well-known…
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Reflecting on Her Return to Valentino, Naomi Campbell Gets Credit for Diversifying the Catwalk
After over three decades on the catwalk, Naomi Campbell still gets nervous. “This is the most nerve-wrecked I’ve ever been at a show,” she admitted just prior to her return to Valentino’s runway after a 14-year absence. Campbell was so emotional during her Paris Couture Week finale walk, she was teary-eyed in her billowing black…