Model Jourdan Dunn ousted by fashion label Christian Dior, reportedly dropping her from their Fall/Winter 2013 Paris Haute Couture runway!
Dunn took to Twitter to reveal the news: “Ahahahahahaha I just for (sic) cancelled from Dior because of my boobs! I❤ fashion #Couture.” The often in-demand Dunn took the news in stride adding, “I’m normally told I’m cancelled because I’m ‘coloured’ so being cancelled because off my boobs is a minor : )”
This isn’t the first time Dunn has faced some form of discrimination. Last month, both Dunn and African-American model Chanel Iman revealed racism still exists in the modeling industry.
According to an article in Net-a-Porter’s Edit magazine,
“There were times when Dunn would be on her way to castings and told to turn back because the client “didn’t want any more black girls.” There was even one instance when a makeup artist announced on a shoot that she didn’t want to make-up Dunn’s face because she herself was white and Dunn was black.”
Iman added to U.K.’s The Times,
“A few times I got excused by designers who told me, ‘We already found one black girl. We don’t need you any more.’ I felt very discouraged.”
Dunn’s lighthearted response to Dior’s discrimination reflects how she’s managed to survive in an industry bent on uploading an unrealistic image.
“I grew up wanting to be my mom. She always seemed to make things work without ever complaining. She whips me into shape,” the model told Edit. When channeling her mother’s strength doesn’t work, Dunn calls on her three-year old son Riley for inspiration.
“If ever I’m sad, I just have to remember, I’m not doing this for me, I’m doing it for him,” she said.
It’s refreshing to see Dunn take a positive approach to keep her career alive, but will the industry truly change if models aren’t willing to cause some friction?
