'Designers that were guilty': Bethann Hardison opens up about her struggle for diversity in fashion
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Legendary fashion model Bethann Hardison has shared the hardships she went through in the industry which hadn’t opened its doors for minorities and Blacks during her time. The model, agent, and self-proclaimed ‘revolutionary’ has been vocal about fair representation in the fashion industry. "I listed all those designers that were guilty, and then I sent it to the press," she said. "It was basically: If you continue to use one model [of color] or two, season after season, the result, no matter the intention, is racism."
Hardison was among the few models of color in the ‘70s and also worked as an agent during the ‘80s and ‘90s. The 80-year-old also cofounded the Black Girls Coalition in 1988 along with her fellow model and buddy Iman. Hardison told People, “hadn't had the opportunity to be seen." She will be now part of a new documentary called ‘Invisible Beauty,’ focusing on her career in fashion. In her several open letters to governing bodies, she appealed earlier on the subject, "I listed all those designers that were guilty, and then I sent it to the press. "It was basically: If you continue to use one model [of color] or two, season after season, the result, no matter the intention, is racism."
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'I had to use it to indicate to others'
The new documentary also talks about Hardison’s decades-long journey, and casting agents’ prejudice, "They were saying, no Blacks, no ethics." She told in a remote interview, "It's not deep to me to hear that." Hardison further explained that since the job is ‘physical’ castings to find the models were based on skin color or hair color. "I had to use it to indicate to others what rabbit hole we'd be going down. It was becoming consistent, and that was the problem,” she added.
'Weren't you scared?'
Hardison also claims that Naomi Campbell asked her to come back after she quit working as an agent and continue to contribute by raising awareness on the issue. "This was a bigger scale. This had become global," she explained. The veteran agrees that the scenario for Black artists has "Greatly improved" in the recent past. "It's very much going in that direction of being integrated completely," she added. "I know that they're working and they have been for the last two years." Answering one of the questions, Hardison said, "Sometimes people say to me, 'Weren't you scared?'. She tells them, "But I was always inspired by people who lacked fear."