29 Days of Black History, Day 20

You don't have to spend more than a minute in the magazine aisle at the grocery store to realize that when it comes to fashion mags, black models are disproportionately represented. Our culture is often borrowed from, but seldom are we given credit or the opportunity to showcase our beauty and creativity first-hand.

In 2008, Vogue Italia released The Black Issue featuring only black models from cover to cover. Every. single. page. g. It was the very first time anything like that had ever been done by a major fashion mag. The issue flew off the shelves worldwide and it has become an annual thing for Vogue. That's great! Some argue that by cramming all the black models in one issue, it makes it easy for us to be ignored otherwise. While I think there is still a lot to be done, I respectfully disagree with the notion that we are ignored except for one month out of the year...but that's another post for another day.

Anywho, hit the read more link to see an interview with the editor of vogue, Franca Sozzani, where she explains how The Black Issue is the "proudest moment in her career".  She also discusses how the issue was not well-received in one particular country. There's a link to photos from that 2008 issue under the drop, as well. Peace!


Peep the pictures HERE.