TW: This piece contains graphics and information that may be disturbing. (TW: George Floyd, Brutality)

Racism. The image that comes in our minds as soon as we hear this word is George Floyd gasping for air or the image of thousands of people holding signs and posters, protesting. 

George Floyd was held down by force for eight minutes before he passed away Motorists are ordered to the ground from their vehicle by police during a protest on South Washington Avenue in Minneapolis on Sunday. Protests continued following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on Memorial Day. The last year has been a wake-up call for a lot of people. People finally started acknowledging that racism exists- that a lot of people have been denied their basic human rights because of their identity and their colour. One such industry which has been known for its discrimination of colour is the fashion industry.

An industry that has spent years catering to Caucasian tastes, fashion isn’t exactly known for its diverse models and designers. In fact, in February 2015’s New York Fashion Week, out of 260 shows on men’s and women’s wear schedule, only 3 with any global reach were by African-American designers! 

David Tiali, at NYSFW 2015 A large number of non-white fashion designers and models have not yet received their due recognition. They are scoffed upon and made to feel inferior. Their talent is not recognised. Models are told that they are not pretty or beautiful enough because of their skin colour. They are rejected before even getting a chance to showcase their talent. They are told that “if you have a black face on the cover of a magazine it won’t sell”. This proves that the industry’s preference for “white” stems from their readers’ or audiences’ choice. This happens with designers as well. Their clothes aren’t worn because “a black person designed it”. But if celebrities are wearing these same clothes, people forget who designed what! An example would be: Tracy Reese. Tracy Reese was not recognized as a famous designer until Michelle Obama wore a dress designed by her to the Democratic National Convention in 2012. People praised the former First Lady, not for her speech, but for her dress! Tracy Reese found fame overnight!

Jourdan Dunn (a black model) has spoken out repeatedly and bravely about how she is often turned away because the client “doesn’t want any more black girls” and is rejected for being “coloured”. This is the change companies make when confronted with their all-white shows and models! To show themselves as progressive and non-racist in front of media, they hire one or two coloured people. No more. 

Hadley Freeman wrote for The Guardian: “Obviously black as a clothing colour is de rigueur – so slimming! – but as skin colour, it has shall we say, struggled to be accepted by the fashion mainstream.” Unfortunately, this is true. Black as a clothing colour is “a statement”, it’s “classy”, but as skin colour, it is “disgusting”, it is a “crime”!

Social media can play a huge role in addressing and raising awareness about this issue. Calling out large brands and companies that have no diversity. Recognizing designers, models and other stylists for their talent, regardless of their colour. The recent protests have made a huge difference in how companies treat and employ coloured workers. But there is still a long ladder to climb. Especially for the fashion industry. This industry needs to understand that the hard work that designers put into their clothes are the same no matter their skin colours, but black stylists have to work even harder because the industry refuses to recognize them and respect them. Makeup brands have to come up with more shades and have to stop promoting products that “apparently” make people fairer. 

Let’s try to remove the word racism from our dictionaries by removing racism from the world. Let’s make sure that no one is ever denied their basic human right because of their skin colour. Let’s make sure that these