It is pretty evident that I love clothes. For me style is a form of creative expression.

Growing up, I have always been a regular kid playing double dutch jump rope while collecting the Spice Girl dolls (yes I am a nineties kid) but also got excited when my mother bought a fashion magazine from the drugstore. As young as I can remember, before I even bothered to actually read an article, I would rummage through pictures as models were uniquely styled in their outfits.

In my gut there was a puzzle that always seemed missing; the problem was no one looked like me.

I know some people may be reading this and wonder why this is so important but like many other issues that are at hand still to this day, let me explain my reason.

When girls are pressured to look a certain size because magazines, commercials, movies, billboard ad and other forms of media displaying being skinny with long flowing hair is the only way of being beautiful, it’s kind of hard to feel a certain confidence. Now when you add the fact that these forms of media, especially when I growing up, showing blond blue-eyed women being the standard for beauty while Naomi Campbell being the poster black model in the industry, the self esteem is not really at high. Naomi is and always will be a boss on the runway, and while Jourdan Dunn may be carrying the torch, more needs to be done in the fashion industry. I am not just talking about more black models, just more visible minorities on a whole.

I can go on and on about the scary facts on how a small percentage of visible minorities are walking down the runway or how even the lighter skinned models will usually get paid more, or even how some designers want their models having ‘European’ features but dipped into chocolate… but there is a problem when that is a thought that will cross people’s minds in the industry.

I am not trying to rip the fashion industry apart, however, when certain issues rise up and people say to get over something while ignoring the problem at hand, there is a certain frustration that arises in me. Race always seems to come up when people want to know who you are and where you are from, but when it comes to the problems that are going on at hand, some people become quiet and oblivious.

Fashion dictates what is in style one season and what is out the next. It impacts many girls and boys alike including models. Parents can tell their children that they are beautiful and smart, that only goes as far as it can. When kids see certain visuals displayed in all media platforms from all industries including fashion, this is a big impact on their way of thinking.

The industry has come a long way in this day of age. You can see different types of models from plus-sized to petite models, and body image for models seem to show viewers and reporters alike that they are healthy and focus on fitness, but more needs to be done. Remember beauty is in the eye of the beholder; there is not just one type. I just hope that the little girls and boys right now feel uplifted at whatever they are seeing.

We can’t uplift if we are always in conflict with others.