Italian Vogue has just made an unprecedented move in the fashion industry, creating a web page dedicated entirely to the happenings and accomplishments of women of color.
Vogue is arguably the central and single most important editorial force in the fashion industry. The Italian division just re-designed and launched their website, making everything available in English as well as Italian. Part of the redesign included the addition of a few auxiliary pages, two of which are entitled “Vogue Black” and “Vogue Curvy.”
The “Vogue Black” page seems entirely dedicated to the task of reporting on black talent in the fashion industry. While it is a first for any major editorial powerhouse to create a division focusing exclusively on women of color, this page still seems uncomfortably exclusionary. Why must we be relegated to a separate page Vogue? Nonetheless, this is a huge step in the right direction, as black women have very few outlets that honor and recognize their great contributions to the industry.
The lead story on the web page as of today is “Know Your ‘Fro,” a curious choice, though a valiant effort at trying to place an “Italian” finger (who exactly is programming and writing for this website?) on the pulse of “black” women’s beauty trends.
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The page also features an interview with Tyra Banks, where she talks about the coming demise of her talk show and her favorite journalistic moments. She states,
“I asked Hillary Clinton how she feels about herself when she looks in the mirror, like, when her clothes are off and when she looks in the mirror. And everyone’s saying, ‘Oh my god I can’t believe you asked her that. oh my God.’ But I felt so comfortable with her, I felt like she was just a girlfriend at home, so I asked her those questions. I didn’t know I was pushing the envelope by asking her things like that.”
It will be interesting to see how things pan out with this new endeavor, though surely we can respect the fact that Italian Vogue has actually taken us into account. It is among the most progressive magazines in the industry, especially considering the hugely successful “Black Issue.” Still, we can’t help by wonder why such a page was spearheaded by Italian Vogue, and not its American counterpart.
Similarly, Vogue Italia has launched a page entitled “Vogue Curvy” which highlights the accomplishments of and news relevant to Curvy women.
Here is its front page:
Somehow this reminds me of high school lunch rooms where the “nerds” have their own table as do the “popular kids” and the “alternatives.” Only in this case, the black women and the curvy girls have their own web pages.
Whats your opinion?
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