Victoria’s Secret ‘angel’ Cameron Russell sets the record straight
Cameron Russell made the fashion world sit up and take notice when she recently said, “For the past few centuries, we (in the West) have defined beauty as tall, slender figures, femininity and white skin. This is a legacy that was built for me, and that I have been cashing in on.” She made this statement during a TEDx series of talks.
Now, the model is not about to let sleeping dogs lie. In a new interview with the Telegraph, the gorgeous model has spoken out again and this time she says that she is not actually against modeling. “If a 16-year-old had my opportunity, I would say, “Take it, it’s fantastic; it pays for university, you will get to travel, you will have access to the media. But it is not a career over which you have any control. Any day they can decide they don’t like you anymore, so you really should have something else that you are good at and passionate about.”
The daughter of successful and wealthy parents whose mother is the founder of the car-hire club Zipcar and father who is an engineer and chief executive officer of GoLoco knows what she’s about. She went on to add: “If anyone were to think that looking like a model is the key to happiness, they just need to meet a group of models. Because they have the thinnest thighs, and the shiniest hair, and the coolest clothes, and are probably the most physically insecure women on the planet.”
In the no holds barred interview, the model points out that in a changing world somehow the world of fashion still holds onto old ideals. Perhaps this statement says it best: “Fashion is capitalism, and it will be fixed by what the market demands.” According to Russell, her success was the result of “winning the genetic lottery.” What is the genetic lottery? It is being a “pretty, skinny white woman” and one who has benefited from a “legacy of gender and racial oppression.”
Time to sit up and take notice? Definitely.
By
T. J. Mueller
