Perspective: The pioneering icon is defending her image, and that of other Black models, from the forgetful fog of history, Robin Givhan writes.
Premiering Monday, the documentary puts the history of Black models — Karen Alexander, Veronica Webb, Joan Smalls, among many — on the record. They are as influential as the writers, musicians or actors who shape our understanding of who we are, but their impact is often overlooked.“Iman was the great ambassador for Africa, especially
“LaQuan says, ‘I have to dress you.’ I said, ‘You know, I’m 67.’ So he said, ‘But you can show a little bit of skin.’ I said, ‘IAnyone expecting to see a spindly stilt of a woman would be both disappointed and pleasantly surprised. Iman is of a different generation of models, whose stature and physique more closely approximated that of mere civilians. She is, of course, thin. But she does not look breakable. She is tall. But she does not tower over those around her.
And some Black Americans were incensed that the industry had gone all the way to Kenya in search of a model of color instead of hiring those right in front of them. “It was an uncomfortable time,” recalls her friend Bethann Hardison, one of the fashion industry’s most outspoken advocates for diversity. “It was offensive to people who were American, Blacks that were here, from Chicago. That was offensive that they were making so much of this girl who was supposedly found in the bush.
In 1969, there was a coup in Somalia; the embassies closed; and the family returned home. In 1972, as government officials were being jailed and even executed, the family fled the country in the middle of the night, Iman recalls. She was 16 when they drove to the Kenyan border, crossed into the country on foot, and became refugees.“I went from an ambassador’s daughter with chauffeur driven cars to: You’re on your own,” Iman says.
The rest of her story has become a part of fashion lore. Beard saw her on the street and asked to take her picture. She reluctantly agreed but only after asking to be paid for her time. She set her fee at $8,000, which was the cost of her tuition. “Before I got into that situation, becoming a refugee, my mom always said, ‘Know your position as a woman. Know what you can walk away from,’ ” Iman says. “ ‘Don’t compromise yourself.’ ”The right people in fashion’s hierarchy saw the photographs.
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