Maria Borges Made History In 2015

In 2015’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion show, Maria Borges made headlines as the first black model to rock her natural hair down the runway.

2015!

That wasn’t too long ago and while we are making progress in inclusivity we should build up the momentum. Not keep it going, but really BUILD it up.

This is why it’s important for us to highlight the pioneers paving the way in that direction.

In an interview with Vogue Italia earlier this year, journalist Italo Pantano asked Maria Borges,

“How can fashion help fight racism and discrimination?”

She responded:

“It is important, in magazines, movies, TV and all media for people to see a vast
array of people from the world participating. Fashion can help fight racial discrimination by having all kinds of models creating positive messages for the brands- on runways, in advertising and in public. Every individual looks good in clothes, so fashion can help show their clothes on people of all colors, shapes and sizes.”

Can we all finally accept this as a fact and progress at a quicker rate?

As a person living in NY, I can attest to the fact that our billboards, advertisement campaigns and popular faces are still quite the same. They’re not exactly rocking my world and if industries want to be noticed, maybe they should move in a forward direction instead of remaining stagnant. We’re tired of the same faces and body types. Let’s mix it up. 👏