Teen Vogue revealed its August issue cover, which features three Black models.
The models are 18-year-old Imaan Hammam, an Egyptian-Moroccan, 19-year-old Lineisy Montero, who is Dominican, and 20-year-old Aya Jones, a French-Ivorian. The trio are being described as, “Fashion’s New Faces.”
The models are among a “small cadre of Black models to grace the influential catwalk since Naomi Campbell in the 90s,” according to Teen Vogue.
The cover decision was hailed as a major step in bringing more diversity to the modeling industry. Some have criticized the exclusion of Black models from the covers of major fashion magazines, which instead use celebrity Black women as placeholders.
Well-known Black women who have carved a path in modeling include Naomi Campbell, Joan Smalls, Malaika Firth and Chanel Iman. But the number of Black models to grace covers, billboards, and walk major fashion runways remains still low compared to their White counterparts.