In the latest installment of “People Fed Up With Whitewashing In The Fashion Industry,” model Nykhor Paul took to social media to express her contempt at the lack of diversity in the fashion industry.
The South Sudanese beauty focused specifically on makeup artists' lack of preparedness when it comes to darker skin tones.
In an Instagram post uploaded yesterday, the 25-year-old fumed,
Dear white people in the fashion world! Please don't take this the wrong way but it's time you get your sh*t right when it comes to our complexion! Why do I have to bring my own makeup to a professional show when all the other white girls don't have to do anything but show up wtf! Don't try to make me feel back because I am blue black, it's 2015, go to [MAC], Bobbi Brown, Makeup Forever, Iman Cosmetics, Black Opal, even Lancôme and Clinique carr[y] them plus so much more. There's so [many] options ou[t] there for dark skin tones today. A good makeup artist would come prepare[d] and do the[ir] reseach before coming to work because oftentimes, you know what to expect especially at a show! Stop apologizing, it's insulting and disrespectful to me and my race it doesn't help, seriously! Make an effort at least! That goes for NYC, London, Milan, Paris and Cape Town plus everywhere else that have issues with black skin tones. Just because you only book a few of us doesn't mean you have the right to make us look ratchet. I'm tired of complaining about not getting book[ed] as a black model and I'm definitely super tired of apologizing for my blackness. Fashion is art, art is never racist, it should be inclusive of all people not only white people, sh*t, we started fashion in Africa and you modernize and copy it! Why can't we be part of fashion fully and equally?
Paul's anger is well-warranted: For a successful high-fashion model (or anyone) -- she's fronted campaigns for the likes of Vivienne Westwood and Balenciaga -- to be treated any different than her white peers based on skin tone alone is racism, pure and simple.
It's absurd that in 2015, this level of inequality is so deeply felt in the African-American community -- and even more so, it's unacceptable.
But, there is a silver lining. Thousands of fans immediately flocked to Paul's defense, offering comments in support of the model's cause.
We've said it once; we've said it a thousand times: It's time for a damn change.
Here's hoping someone in the industry takes notice and makes the necessary changes happen sooner rather than later.
Citations: Model Nykhor Paul blasts unprepared makeup artists making her feel bad for having a darker skin tone (Daily Mail)
