In case you missed it, last week Rihanna was named the new face of Dior. She will star in Dior’s Secret Garden video series as well as a print campaign coming later this year. So why is this so significant? Well, the iconic house was founded on December 16, 1946 and has never had a black woman front the campaign until now. Although this might come as a surprise, it unfortunately shouldn’t. The fashion industry has been under fire for a while now for its lack of diversity and underlying racism prevalent in pretty much every facet of the business. Rihanna told MTV that being the new face of Dior and breaking history “feels fantastic. It is such a big deal for me, for my culture, for a lot of young girls of any color.”
At Christian Dior Fall 2014 Show
Source: Getty / Patrick Kovarik
While Rihanna’s words ring true, what’s sad is that there is still history like this to be made. It’s 2015 and there are still less minority models on the cover of magazines, walking the runways and featured in designer campaigns than white models. Not to mention the ones that are featured usually have lighter skin or their skin has been digitally lightened (Kerry Washington’s latest InStyle cover or Gabourey Sidibe for Elle anyone?).
Need more examples? It was news when Jourdan Dunn landed the cover of British Vogue because she was the first solo black model to do so in 12 years. Chanel Iman was the youngest model to appear on the cover of American Vogue, yet the focus shifted to the fact that she was only the 3rd black model to do so. There is rarely more than 3-4 black models walking in a show, and while Asian models usually make a dent on the runway, it’s nothing compared to the number of white models who walk. As for other ethnicities? They’re not even represented. When was the last time you saw a model of Indian descent on the catwalk or the cover of a magazine?
So why is it taking the fashion industry such a long time to come into the 21st century? Supermodel Beverly Johnson, who made history being the first black model to appear on a Vogue cover in 1974, told The Daily Beast that “fashion is no different than any other industry… it has to change if you’re going to move forward.”
In Dior at 2010 Kid’s Choice Awards
Source: Getty / Gregg DeGuire
Rihanna’s appointment as the latest face of Dior is extremely important to eliminating the racism that is still present in the industry. An A-list celebrity, at the top of every Best Dressed List and a frequent presence in the Front Row, Rihanna is a fashion darling. Regardless of what she’s doing, whom she’s with, or what she’s wearing, she attracts attention. It’s a smart move by Dior to cast her in their campaign for those reasons, but it’s also a huge step in a direction that is surely to be repeated by other fashion houses.
So while this shouldn’t have been a historic event, it does show that change is coming. You can talk about making a change all day long and what to do in order to make that change, but until a step is actually made, change won’t come. And although it is long overdo, maybe this was the step that needed to be made to spark that change.