Xidigo Posted February 18, 2008 ------------------------------------------------- Last week hundreds of models strutted before the crowds at London Fashion Week - but very few of them were black or Asian. Why don't the style parades in London, Paris and New York reflect the multiracial nature of the cities where they take place? Elizabeth Day reports Sunday February 17, 2008 The Observer Models wearing Jens Laugesen during London Fashion Week. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA Katharine Hamnett does not believe the cliché that black never goes out of fashion. In recent years, the designer has seen a resurgence of white on the catwalks. But it is not the colour of the clothes she has noticed, so much as the colour of the models. 'The catwalks are full of white dogs,' she says, with barely concealed irritation. 'Cosmetic companies don't like black models - the racist *****es. I have no idea why when it's obvious that black girls are just so genuinely much more beautiful than Caucasians, who have clearly got the short straw. Black girls have much better body shapes and it's such a shame. I just think there should be a bit more of a balance.' While it is rare for a fashion insider to voice opinions so forcefully, Hamnett is not alone. Vivienne Westwood, the grande dame of British style, has in the past urged glossy magazines to adopt a quota system for ethnic minority models. And agent Carole White, co-founder of Premier Model Management, has admitted that finding work for black clients is harder than for white models. 'Sadly we're in the business where you stock your shelves with what sells. According to the magazines, black models don't sell. We have had casting briefs which say "no ethnics",' she says. This month, Naomi Campbell said that she felt black models were being 'sidelined by major modelling agencies'. In the run-up to New York Fashion Week, Diane von Furstenberg, president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, entreated members to stage 'truly multicultural' shows. Then, last Monday, on the first day of London Fashion Week, the 17-year-old model Jourdan Dunn voiced her concerns that Britain's racial make-up was not being fairly represented. 'London's not a white city,' she said, 'so why should our catwalks be so white?' It is a moot point, given that London's ethnic minorities make up 29 per cent of an eight million-strong population. The largest ethnic group, accounting for around 800,000 people, is Afro-Caribbean. And what of the other fashion capitals of the world? In New York, 28 per cent of the city's 19 million inhabitants describe themselves as black. One Parisian in seven is of foreign nationality and the city is home to the majority of France's 1.4 million residents of African origin. Yet these figures are not reflected in the fashion industry. The Jezebel style website found that of New York Fashion Week's 103 runway shows, there were 2,278 opportunities to feature a model on the catwalk and a black model was used only 298 times. Eighteen designers used no black models at all. Read more here Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
