FRENCH VOGUE: Better to Paint White Models Black than Hire Black Models

 

At least that's the message I was left with when I saw these photos.

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In the October edition of French Vogue, Dutch Model Lara Stone is depicted as black in a 13-page spread, her entire face and body covered in brown-hued make-up.  Perhaps even more offensive is the fact that this particular edition was marketed as the "Women of Color" issue yet NO women of color were displayed on any of its pages.

 

Model Lara Stone (as she actually looks)

 

 

FRENCH VOGUE (October 2009 Edition): Model Lara Stone in blackface

As expected, this issue has raised international controversy (and rightfully so).  Here are just some of the reactions:

 

American Blog 'Jezebel':  "What Klein and Roitfeld should know … is that painting white people black for the entertainment of other white people is offensive in ways that stand entirely apart from cultural context. France and Australia may not have the United States' particular history of minstrel shows … but something about the act of portraying a white woman as black ought to sound an alarm, somewhere."

Dominique Sopo, President of French Anti-Racism Group 'SOS Racisme':  Even if the shoot was not racist in intention it was certainly "tactless".

"If the aim was artistic, and not to pass off the model as a black girl, the fact that it produces such reactions shows that the world of images – advertising, fashion, whatever – is now paying for its long tradition of not allowing black people to show their bodies in public."

Check out news footage.

Of course, French Vogue responded to the outrage by saying that they were unaware of any controversy caused by the fashion spread.  Yeah, right!  Sadly, this is the typical response from  perpetrators of racism (at worst) and racial insensitivity (at best). 

Comments

[Robert Thompson]

Wow. That is really sad. As a black person i am really insulted. It is a known fact that black models are discriminated against on the runways and fashion magazines . But now they are being imitated by white models by doing black face ads? It's like here in the USA,Hollywood does everything to faze black actresses out of television and movies. It goes so far as to exclude black actors and actresses from being onscreen lovers. White actors and actresses are substituted as onscreen love interest for them. Totally insulting.