Naomi Campbell has been modeling for 34 years now, and the No Filter with Naomi host is known for always using her influence to help in significant social causes. The supermodel who was the first black woman to be in the covers of French Vogue and American Vogue especially advocates for inclusivity and diversity in the fashion industry.
However, despite her success in modeling, there were still times when Campbell's campaign for equality wasn't received well. The Making the Cut judge recently shared on Instagram, an old interview where she was rudely interrupted by the host as she expressed her thoughts on racism in the fashion industry.
Naomi Campbell's Interrupted Explanation
The exclusive interview with Channel 4 News that aired in 2013 was supposed to be a discussion about Campbell's belief that the fashion world still discriminates against people of color. At the beginning of the video she posted, you could already sense the antagonistic tone of the host as he asked the supermodel, "Are you essentially accusing the industry that you've done very well in of being racist?"
Campbell then answered that it was the act of choosing models for fashion campaigns that is racist. She also said that the casting directors may not even be aware of it. Then she confirmed that 82% of the runway models in the New York Fashion Week in 2012 were white.
In the same tone, the host asked why she couldn't just go up to designers to hire people of color to which Campbell answered, "who says I haven't." The interviewer didn't seem to get the point that there simply hadn't been any change in the industry's ways despite the famous supermodel's efforts.
Host Brings Up Naomi's Anger Issues
Campbell started stressing that her fame is no basis that models of color are treated fairly in the industry. As the supermodel went on to passionately talk about how the industry casts of models of color for mere aesthetic, the interviewer began bringing up her anger issues.
Campbell then raised her tone to clarify that the purpose of her appearance in the program was to talk about racism in the fashion industry and not to talk about herself. Still, the host insisted on getting the question in and even went as far as to describe Campbell's strong emphasis on her invalidated arguments as anger.
Campbell corrected the interviewer's claim by explaining that it's not an "angry black woman" thing but simply a passionate expression. The heated conversation ended shortly after that with Campbell saying she has faith in the British Fashion Council which was the first to respond to her campaign.
