STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Cast Zero Models of Color in Their Fashion Show

The Fashion Spot’s Biannual Diversity Report found that they had none while Kanye West had the most.

It’s not a secret that the fashion industry has been lagging behind when it comes to broadening the diversity gap. And while there has been a serious push to up those numbers, it’s important to still hold them accountable until they do.

Enter: The Fashion Spot’s Biannual Diversity Report

 

The website tracks all of the runways shows around the world to access how inclusive the fashion world and by looking at the past 99 shows and 8,832 model appearances, there were clearly some designers who still don’t get it.

That includes Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, whose The Row show at Spring 2017 New York Fashion Week, one of the most anticipated events of the season, featured no models of color, Cosmopolitan noted.

Sadly, they weren’t alone. Designers Junya Watanabe, Mila Schön, Daniela Gregis, and Anrealage also boasted all-white runways.

Now, the good news is that there was a slight increase of diversity with a record 25.35 percent were of color — 10.33 percent Black; 7 percent Asian; 3.3 Latina; .4 percent Middle Eastern and 4.27 percent "other." Granted this isn’t as high as they would like — given that seven out of the 10 most booked models were still white — but it’s a start.

So which designers helped bring these numbers up?

First, despite the controversy around “multiracial” models, Kanye West lauded the most diversity with 97 percent of his models of color during his Yeezy Season 4. Others included: Kimora Lee Simmons (82 percent); Ashish (75 percent); and Brandon Maxwell (69 percent).

The report also found that New York Fashion Week was the most diverse compared to the Paris and London shows and that plus-size and transgender models were also slightly on the up this year.

We hope the numbers will continue to improve next year.

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.