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Entity explores the lack of diversity in the modeling industry.

The modeling industry is often the target of body diversity activists for its unrealistic representations of women’s bodies. While racism and intolerance defined the modeling industry as it rose to prosperity, discriminatory practices have continued to seal the “look” of modeling to this day.

However, the industry has been forced to make some critical changes in recent years. Although these changes signify a new era for modeling women, it has become evident that there is a long way to go before culturally, sexually, physically and racially diverse catwalks become a reality.

From the Civil Rights era all the way through to the present, models of color have been fighting for fair job opportunities and equal pay. As a result, many advertising companies and modeling agencies that cater specifically to women of color have been introduced. In the HBO documentary “About Face,” supermodels Pat Cleveland, Bethann Hardison and Beverley Johnson talk about the discrimination they faced as models of color. They faced instances of their “buses almost being overturned by armed, hateful men” but they find that “subtle racism, like being paid less or being told you can’t ‘be used’ in fashion shoots” is the saddest occurrence that still exists to this day.

It is the mark left from such discrimination that made Beverly Johnson – the first African-American woman to grace the cover of Vogue – so noteworthy. The legendary cover, shot in 1974, served as a catalyst for change in the modeling industry. “I just wanted to be on it, because that’s where you had to be to be a top model. I didn’t realize the significance and change we were embarking on—black women being accepted. Afterwards I knew,” said Johnson of the iconic cover.

Later, supermodels such as Tyra Banks, Naomi Campbell and Joan Smalls would take the modeling industry by storm. In an interview with ABC News, world renowned supermodel Tyra Banks laments that her success in the industry “had to do with [her] coloring and the fact that [her] eyes are green and [her] hair is sandy and [her] skin is caramel colored. But, [she has] made it one of the missions of [her] life to redefine and to open up the small box of what beautiful is.”

During the 1960s, Twiggy, most famous for her thin frame and quirky makeup looks, set the stage for the physical requirements of models today. The requirements, following the traditional sample sizes produced by high-end designers, are to have a 34″ bust, 24″ waist and 34″ hips. Most women cannot achieve this body type in a healthy way.

Many women and young girls have succumbed to eating disorders in order to achieve this body type, but the reality is that many models are under the age of sixteen, which means that they either haven’t grown into their full body shapes or are genetically hardwired with naturally long, lean bodies. Many young women that do not fit the measurements necessary to become models have had liposuction, eating disorders and even rib removals in an effort to obtain this body type.

The modeling industry’s standards have remained this way since the very beginning and despite a few exceptions to the requirements put into place, models still face absurd amounts of harassment from agencies, designers and casting directors about their weight. However, while it is clear that several factors of discrimination run rampant in the modeling industry, recent developments have shattered many of these discriminatory practices. Joan Smalls, an Afro-Puerto Rican model, is one of the highest paid models in the industry. She recounts that earlier in her career, her agent advised her that she would not get very much work as there was “only room for one [black girl] at a time.”

It is also being widely noted that, though rare, East Asian, Hispanic, Indian and Middle-Eastern models are finally being accepted into the industry and many models with measurements far beyond the traditional sample sizes are enjoying very lucrative careers. Although these developments have substantially progressed the modeling industry’s impossible standards, there is still inequality on the runway, as more than 75 percent of the models in worldwide Fashion Weeks are white.

In an open letter to the Council of Fashion Designers of America, former model and activist, Beth Ann Hardison insists (via Vogue) that “no matter the intention, the result is racism … Whether it’s the decision of the designer, stylist, or casting director, that decision to use basically all white models, reveals a trait that is unbecoming to modern society.” The letter was written in September of 2013 and is one of many attempts by Hardison to reverse the lack of diversity apparent on the catwalk.

The modeling industry has convinced the world successfully that there is only one “look” to achieve and that those who don’t have it or cannot achieve it do not fit the current standards of beauty. This has destroyed the hopes and dreams of many model hopefuls solely on the basis of color, age and size. However much progress is made, no major developments have been made to ensure that racism, ageism and sizeism are completely diminished in the modeling industry.

Despite the efforts of the modeling agents who have given models of diverse racial backgrounds, ages, sexual orientations and sizes the opportunities to become some of the most highly competitive models in the world, it still has not been sufficient for diversity in beauty and fashion to become a reality. Uniformity continues to prevail. What will it take for equality in the modeling industry to finally become as diverse as the world to which it advertises?

Edited by Ellena Kilgallon
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