Supermodel Jourdan Dunn announced on her Instagram account Friday that she is the cover model for February’s issue of British Vogue. To grace the cover of a high fashion magazine is a dream come true for any model, and no is doubt a highlight in Dunn’s career. Unfortunately, it is rare for Black supermodels to get such opportunities.

by Lyndsey Ellis

As America honored what would’ve been Dr. Martin Luther King’s 85th birthday on Monday, one incident threatened to spoil the moment.  An online magazine called Buro 247 published a story about Garage Magazine’s Russian editor-in-chief and socialite, Dasha Khukova. The article’s photo showed Ms. Khukova sitting on a chair designed to emulate a topless black woman donning long gloves, hot pants, and go-go boots.

Originally published at Brown Mommys

by Cynthia Levy

Social media is once again buzzing. Now, Christians everywhere are up in arms about this:

 Yes, Erica Campbell of the gospel duo Mary, Mary has debuted her new solo album wearing this form-fitting white dress that many say is just to skanky for public Christian consumption. All I can say is that this is why Christianity is quickly drowning in the bowels of the American psyche.

by Amber Johnson

The trajectory of race relations in the United States has been and will continue to be anything but smooth. In terms of public relations and cultural reconciliation, great strides have been made as is shown by the de-segregation of schools and public spaces and the strike down of anti-miscegenation laws. However, systemic discrimination and unconscious bias are still very much imbedded in the American society. This discrimination and bias are apparent in many forms, but one of the most current forms exists in the fashion world.

Africa is in vogue. Again. African print clothing and accessories are re-emerging so rapidly, it’s somewhat difficult to believe the vibrant patterns and colors weren’t always so popular.

Several are credited with bringing African-inspired clothing into the commercial fashion spotlight. Algerian-born fashion legend, Yves Saint Laurent is probably the most renowned among them, as the first to design African-inspired clothing for the runway. Laurent’s 1967 African Collection and his collaboration with supermodel Iman in his African Queen collection, are considered fashion landmarks.

Vogue Netherlands published an editorial that features white models with their faces painted black. At this point, magazines and photographers pull these types of stunts with the intent to draw criticism and boost sales, so I feel conflicted about even mentioning it. But this is a great time to think about the things we call blackface and the implications of the label.

I nearly decided not to comment on what was clearly a stunt by Numéro magazine, but silence maintains hegemony.

I've seen this photo of a 16-year-old model floating around my social media accounts for days, but I couldn't bring myself to respond. I've expended lots of energy pointing out the maliciously racist practices of fashion designers and publications in the past, and quite frankly, I'm fatigued. This is one of those battles that feels unwinnable.

 
What's a girl who loves fashion but hates the industry to do? Racism is fashion's constant companion, and the pair won't soon separate. It seems every season a major designer must be chastised for exploiting "exotic" prints and images or excluding models color. And every season these designers attempt to justify their bigoted missteps as byproducts of the artistry. There is, however, no explanation for why these earrings depicting the cartoonish heads of dark-skinned black women made it into Dolce & Gabbana's recent runway show.

In only a few years, Chicao-native Shari Neal has turned her t-shirt side-hustle into a successful small business. Since its launch, Bon BonVie’s sleek designs and empowering messages have become blogger favorites. (Like everyone else, we adore the Brown Skin Lady tee.) Shari and Bon Bon Vie prove that uplifting Black women can provide the foundation for a successful company.

Pick up the latest issue of American Vogue and you'll catch an unusual sight: A Black Woman. Rihanna covers the magazine's April Issue, but don't be too quick to laud the fashion Bible's inclusiveness. In a revealing gown, the pop star gives her best come hither face (or is that modeling?) to mark the magazine's 10th Annual Shape issue.

This is the same issue in which Beyonce was featured in 2009; Vogue's choice to stick the two biggest pop stars in the world on their body-centered releases contradicts their intended message of beauty diversity.

The glossy continually fails to embrace diverse standards of beauty choosing instead to fetishize Black women's bodies.

Related Article: How Do Our Bodies Become Trends?

But what else should we expect from a magazine that in it's more than 100 year history has featured only two Black women on it's storied September issue, and a total 7 women in the last decade.

We know that we cannot rely on mainstream media to provide self-affirming images; however, it's irksome to think of self-satisfied execs patting themselves on the back for their progressiveness.

It's also worth noting that as thin, light-skinned women, Beyonce and Rihanna represent the narrowest scope of celebrated black beauty.

So what can we do about it? Naomi Campbell once mentioned that she would like to open her own modeling agency in Africa in order to find more black models, but you and I have no option but to start smaller.

First, Let's stop getting so excited about seeing our images on publications that do not cater to us. One of the main reasons publications like Vogue can continues its racist practices is because we (minorities) act like starved dogs when they throw us a bone.

Second, fashion lovers should take every opportunity to support women of color focused Vogue alternatives like Jones Magazine, The Fashion Bomb, Ghubar Magazine, Arise Magazine, and FashIzBlack.

The fashion industry provides yet another example of an opportunity for men and women of The Diaspora to exert their influence in nontraditional ways. No, the online and independent publications we support won't have Vogue name recognition or financial backing, but at the very least we can be assured that the people behind the pages have our best interests at heart.

Kimberly Foster (@kimberlynfoster) is the Editor-in-Chief of For Harriet.