A few days ago a handful of aspiring black fashion editors silently marched to draw attention to the absence of black fashion directors attending shows at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week:
Led by Michaela Angela Davis, the protest was the most recent outward demonstration against the hiring of Australian born Elliana Placas as fashion director of Essence Magazine. Protesters held signs saying, “I am Harriette Cole,” “I am Agnes Cammock,” to, as Davis said, “pay homage to women that have opened the doors for them as fashion directors.” Davis added, “This is the first time in their lifetime there is no black fashion director at fashion week.”
Sure, there may not be fashion directors attending fashion week this season, but the tents are bubbling over with people of color. I’ve been having a great time talking and catching up with everyone from junior editors at national magazines (including Essence) to newspaper editors and bloggers. One of the most refreshing things about being back in the United States is seeing that we are represented in increasing numbers. Trust me, it’s not the case in Paris.
I applaud Michaela pushing for more inclusiveness, but I’m unsure if a protest was really necessary. Instead of protesting, I see a lot of people doing: writing, tweeting, and blogging.
What do you think?
*The actual demonstration occurred on the first day of Fashion Week, but I didn’t hear about it until recently…maybe because it was a silent protest?
September 14, 2010 9:07 pm
Talent should trump race. However, I do think that Essence magazine made a huge misstep in hiring Placas. Is she really that much more talented than her black counterparts?
September 14, 2010 9:17 pm
I think this protest is misguided. Magazines aren’t going to matter in 5 years. People should focus on being the best on the web, on TV, etc. Being a fashion director is increasingly irrelevant and I predict there will be no more fashion directors of any color in 10 years (all the mags will have shut down). Let’s refocus on what matters…spreading influence, supporting each other in real ways.
September 14, 2010 9:55 pm
@the truth @Layla- you two bring up very valuable points.
September 14, 2010 9:59 pm
Once again, I’m tired of people waiting for others to give them an opportunity. How about you create your own opportunity? Yes, it’s unfortunate that a caucasian woman obtained that fashion director position at Essence. However, Essence has been owned by a white corporation (Time Warner) for years, and no one was up in arms about that! It’s time for us to create and to continue to expand our own our empires. Oftentimes, Black companies become successful and they end up selling their legacy to other communities. Afterwards, we see how the quality of the particular company diminishes (BET).
If these Black fashion industry heads don’t like what’s currently going on at Fashion Week, then they should pull their resources together and create their own legitimate, professional, and uber-talented fashion week!
September 14, 2010 10:28 pm
Honestly, I don’t have a problem with the protest because even though their are black people or people of color represented at these shows and companies but certain position still elude us. Their is nothing wrong taking matter into your own hands, making a come up for yourself and doing things your way so you can be heard and represented but at the same time it is still sad that you almost have to shout, hey I’ am black and would like to be a fashion editor, be this that or the other when it comes to the fashion industry for these companies without people giving you the side eye. So, I think even though we are represented and are there, plenty of work still needs to be done.
September 14, 2010 11:15 pm
no problem with protesting. it’s their right.
September 14, 2010 11:52 pm
@ Layla I soooo agree with you to a point. I like to hold a glossy. Nothing will replace that but ask me the last time I purchased an American magazine. My money is now spent on French/Russian Vouge and Elle. I can’t wait for Arise Magazine to hit the stand. Their covers are amazing! But with the Fashion Bomb Daily, Clutch, Coco and Cream, Pride, Lipstick Dairies and a slew of other websites, why would I ever purchase them? For the articles..LMAO! American magazine are going down, not European.
We no longer have to fight with the white magazines for shine. Why? F*ck ‘em. I was on here one day and they had a section on Becca cosmetics…BECCA!!!!! Becca never gets mentioned in Cosmo. It’s always Loreal and Maybelline…who wears that chit?
So the battle is not totally won. Only when we stop hating on each other and loose some damn weight and stop acting like sporting a tight dress w/a gut is the chit…..will we have our own and be damn proud of it.
September 15, 2010 1:46 am
@Mz. Bronze you have some very valid points ma’am. Not sure if I would be as blunt as you on the whole weight issue but you are definitely addressing some issues. Now that I think about it I go through more withdrawals when I haven’t visited my favorite blogs as opposed to material in magazines.
If I’m bored in a waiting area I simply pull out my phone and pull up my favorite blog site as opposed to pulling out a magazine.
September 15, 2010 9:21 am
Pointless protest to me.
September 15, 2010 11:14 am
Great comments ladies!
@Beauty is Diverse, I challenge your comment. Why was the protest pointless? Are you implying that Black people are well represented in the Fashion Industry? I know at times it seems that Black people like to get on our soup box and wail but. . . where would we be if NO ONE spoke up. There would be no Essence, no Naomi, Kimora or Beverly Johnson. I could say, “Hey look at France, they have no prominent Black figures, we should be thankful.” Thankful of what? accepting that Black will always be second rate? Accepting that we will always have to speak up.
If, after Obama leaves the White House, and the trend of “Its cool to be Black”, becomes reality and I still see Black people in TV Ads, web ad, magazine ads, fashion Ads, fashion cataloges in places I’ve rarely seen a Black face before, then only then will I agree that the silent protest for more Black Editors was pointless.
September 15, 2010 3:34 pm
@Daisy I see your points and where you want to go w/creating our own opportunities, but wouldn’t a “black fashion week” isolate & marginalize us even more? They were protesting because they want to be a part of it, not do something in parallel of it. And as @binks says it does suck to (silently) shout, hey we are black and we want to be fashion editors, we want to be a part of this. They just wanted to make a statement. Was a protest the good way to do it? Hum not sure. As Claire said, tweeting, blogging or maybe an opened letter to an influential newspaper or magazine would have been a better idea..
September 15, 2010 5:41 pm
I think the protest was just. We live in such a wanna be “post-racial” society we chalk up the lack of Black fashion editors as somehow “our own fault.” It is somehow a reflection on us as a matter of incompetence or unqualified. Yes there are people of color but there is an obviously oblivious unconsciousness of discrimination. And we do ourselves no favor by criticizing the very people who recognize that even if we don’t.
September 15, 2010 6:46 pm
@Ms. Denine- The protest to me was pointless because everyone has the equal opportunity to create a resume & cover letter and apply for a job. Essence felt that the Elliana Placas was best suited for the job and people need to accept that and move on. Naomi Campbell isn’t where she is because of Black people she is where she is because she is an amazing model and people within the industry throughout her career have always wanted to book her in magazines, campaigns etc, that has nothing to do with black people she accomplished that her self .
September 17, 2010 11:33 am
They are motivated enough to protest about fashion but I doubt these women will stand up something that actually matters in REAL life. If they’re willing to put in the time for this, why not be out there protesting for better education for thier children/future children. Why not support the poor, feed the hungry, counsel troubled youth,equal pay for women, Hati, anything else! Fashion is light and for fun. We should be worried about much much more. Why do we waste our efforts on things that do not matter in the greater scheme of things.
September 18, 2010 12:47 am
@beauty is diverse- everyone has the opportunity to APPLY for any job, the problem lies in who actually gets hired, and it’s been proven time and again that white people are more likely to get hired for a job then black people. essence was one of the few magazines that an aspiring black fashion director could work where they actually had a REAL CHANCE of eventually becoming a fashion director. how many other magazines could you say that for? obviously not many because there are currently no black fashion directors at any mainstream fashion magazines.
@rox- oh please. what a pathetic derail. of course there are other things to talk about, but guess what? addressing the glass ceiling and roadblocks to advancement against black people in an entire industry is a VERY important issue.
November 6, 2010 2:03 pm
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