Miami Swim Week casting calls took place this month and, well, it’s been a whirlwind. From stealing designs to blatant racism when it came to casting black models — Swim Week has shown us that there’s a long way to go when it comes to the fashion industry.
Model Joia Talbott and 10-15 other stunning black queens were dismissed from a casting call this past week. As the models were on their way out because of a "closed casting," they noticed the casting quickly proceeded.
Vía a very infuriating video posted on Facebook, one of the models can be seen discussing what just happened:
"They told us they didn’t want any more black models, and that afros were a no-no," the model said. "They was definitely not feeling my afro at all, so I didn’t stand a chance, right? Wow. We’re ready to go back to LA where we’re appreciated, and we book."
The discrimination within the fashion industry is definitely not new — Ashley Chew began the Black Models Matter movement and protests happened outside the Balenciaga show last year in support of the movement, agents shared Lanvin’s request to not be presented with women of color and models revealed being asked to make their natural hair "less springy," whatever that means.
Ebonee Davis shared some disheartening stories during her 2017 TED talk on what it’s like to be a black model in which she shared:
"I had white agents, with no knowledge of black hair care, run their fingers through my hair and tell me things like, 'We already have a girl with your look.' Translation: All black girls look the same. Or 'we don’t think there’s room for you on our board.' Translation: We’re at the capacity for black models we’d like to represent. But the most excruciatingly painful? 'We just don’t know what to do with you.'"
The discriminatory issues lying within the folds of the fashion industry spread to Asian models as well, something Chrissy Teigen has called out the industry about. When it comes to fashion magazines, the surplus of white models does not go unnoticed. The issue is spread wide and lucky for us, the proof is there.
The systematic racism issue does exist and with scandals like these coming out into the public eye, there might just be hope for justice. While Miami Swim Week may not want these queens walking their runways, we’d like to show them the appreciation they deserve. Keep scrolling to see more of the gorgeous models that swim week declared were "no-nos:"
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