Models with Disabilities Fight to Navigate an Ableist Fashion Industry
Graphic by Meher Yeda. Images via Kelly Knox, Shaholly Ayers, Ellie Goldstein and Tommy Hilfiger.
In 2008, Kelly Knox saw a video of a model who said New York Fashion Week would rather burn down than see a disabled person on the runway.
Knox, who was born without a left forearm, refused to let this stop her from pursuing her modeling goals. Instead, the model’s comment fueled her desire to continue chasing her dream, despite the dip her confidence took when she entered the fashion industry.
Kelly Knox. Image via Daily Mail.
As recently as 12 years ago, when Knox first started modeling, the industry employed barely any models with disabilities. Despite the fact that 26% of the U.S. and 10% of the world’s population has a disability, there are still only a handful of models with disabilities working on major campaigns today.
“Someone once told me, ‘no one aspires to be disabled,’ and I don’t expect anyone to chop their hand off in the name of fashion,” Knox says. “But with the millions of people out there who are disabled, they need a role model to look up to, someone to aspire to, to know that there is someone out there like them who is confident, happy and successful and doing what they wanted to do because they believed in themselves.”
Aimee Mullins in Alexander McQueen’s S/S99 show. Image via AnOther Magazine.
Rocky Beginnings
When actress and Paralympic athlete Aimee Mullins started in the modeling industry over 25 years ago, she was one of the first ever models with disabilities to do so. Mullins had both legs amputated below the knee as a baby, and she has worn prosthetics since. At the start of her career, she opened for Alexander McQueen’s runway show in 1999, sporting a pair of wooden legs that would disrupt the status quo of the fashion industry for years to come.
However, Mullins’ success did not come without its hardships. Throughout her entire career, Mullins has had to work to not be a “flash in the pan.”
“(I’m) trying not to be a novelty, and not a gimmick,” Mullins says. “The definitions the world is working under are far too narrow and exclude a lot of people.”
Similarly, model and inclusion advocate Shaholly Ayers says after struggling for 10 years to even be considered a model, she now feels that sometimes campaigns use her to “fill a quota,” rather than actually aiming to be more naturally inclusive.
Shaholly Ayers. Image via TODAY.
“There are a lot more people with disabilities that are models which is wonderful,” Ayers says. “But now it’s more difficult because we are all competing for the same opportunity.”
While the increase in the number of models with disabilities and the subsequent increase of opportunities are certainly milestones to be celebrated, there are still not enough opportunities to support the number of models, limiting their ability to succeed and accurately represent their community.
Moving in the Right Direction, yet Falling Short
2020 saw a massive push for more diversity in the modeling industry, with individual campaigns being called on to be more representative of various races, sexualities and genders. As a result, there has been progress with representation of people with disabilities. For instance, Gucci featured Ellie Goldstein, an 18-year-old model with Down syndrome, in their mascara campaign. It quickly became their most liked social media post, which should have been a sign to other companies, Knox says.
Anne Hathaway in “The Witches.” Image via Health Magazine.
Nonetheless, there is still a glaring gap.
“2020 is more inclusive and diverse, but with disability I feel that we are not part of this [push for] diversity when we should be,” Knox says. “I feel like we’re the last barrier to break in the industry.”
Most recently, the disabled community took a major blow with the release of “The Witches,” HBO’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved novel. Anne Hathaway’s character, the Grand High Witch, has a limb difference, with only three fingers on each hand.
This portrayal of a common disability encourages children who view the movie to associate limb differences with something fearful and evil — a trope that too often haunts the disabled community.
A wave of protests sprung up in the community, with the rise of the hashtag #NotAWitch paired with images of people with limb differences reclaiming their beauty and owning their difference as something unique, rather than scary.
However, this misrepresentation has set the disabled community back miles, says Ayers, who was born without a right forearm.
“As a model with a disability and somebody that has been trying to change that stigma, it makes it more difficult for me to go against this Hollywood movie starring Anne Hathaway and trying to say, ‘well, that’s incorrect,’” Ayers says. “Yes, we want representation. But doing it in a way to make it more positive, and less scary, because we have a lot of stigma and prejudice to get through.”
The movie has multiple issues in this regard, including using able-bodied actors and green screening off their limbs rather than casting actors with disabilities. But perhaps the most concerning aspect is the lasting impact this film may have on its target audience: young children.
“Kids watch movies over and over again, and movies stay with us for years,” Ayers says. “This isn’t just going to affect the generation right now — this has the potential of affecting multiple generations. It’s now something in the mainstream that’s going to be a fabric of these children’s lives growing up.”
Adaptive Clothing: Hit or Miss?
In 2018, Tommy Hilfiger launched “Tommy Adaptive,” a line designed specifically for people with disabilities with adaptations to make the clothing better fit to their bodies. While certainly a step in the right direction, the line still felt, quite literally, very “other,” with the word plastered at the top of the page.
The line has a separate website and Instagram, which Ayers says makes it feel like more of a side project.
“Even when they’re doing advertising, you won’t see any of the people with disabilities on their main Instagram page,” Ayers says. “It needs to become more mainstream. It makes it harder for other companies to follow suit if it’s a hidden away subject.”
Mullins and Ayers agree that these “adaptive” lines should not only be targeted toward people with disabilities, but really anyone could benefit from them. Specifically, people with arthritis or other joint issues could also greatly benefit from magnetic zippers or other adaptive features.
If these campaigns were less “othered,” then consumers might put more spending power toward purchasing adaptive clothing. This would prompt companies to create more options, ultimately benefiting everyone.
Hope for the Future
Although much more needs to be done, the plight of representation for people with disabilities continues and, despite some setbacks, has seen recent success with major milestones.
Models like Knox, Ayers and Mullins may have been among the first models with disabilities, but they hope their efforts will certainly keep them from being the last. The work they have done is groundbreaking, and the sacrifices they have made, in being made to feel “other” or torn down for their disability, are inspiring.
“I could’ve given up so many times, but there was something in the back of my head saying that this isn’t about you, this is about society and humanity as a whole,” Knox says.
Knox hopes that younger people with disabilities who may aspire to be models feel there is a place for them in the fashion industry, and that more opportunities will open up as they grow older.
In the meantime, her advice is to always practice self-love.
“No matter what you want to achieve, all your goals and dreams are valid and you can 100% achieve them,” Knox says. “A difference is something not to be ashamed of. It’s something to be celebrated fully.”