Abuse in the world of fashion
As the allegations mount, it’s up to corporations to end the pervasive sexism and the “hush hush” culture around sexual harassment and predation
The Harvey Weinstein scandal has triggered a wave of allegations, revelations and even confessions via the #MeToo campaign across media and entertainment. I’m not the only one working in the fashion business wondering whether this will finally signal the end of our own disgraceful “hushhush” culture surrounding harassment.
I thought this moment had come when reading that Conde Nast International — which publishes
Vogue, GQ and Glamour — had decided that it would no longer work with photographer Terry Richardson, for whom allegations of multiple sexual assaults have dogged his seemingly unstoppable career.
But given that we have only heard this because of a leaked email, and that the company has refused to confirm or deny it publicly, perhaps not. This late display of “duck and cover” neither protects victims nor presents Conde Nast as an ethically minded company. Because when accusations are made, it’s usually the accusers who suffer, unless the fashion industry decides to change its habit of a lifetime and makes the correct moral choice to make a strong show of protecting them. As a fashion stylist, I was sexually harassed by a high-profile rapper in a meeting with a fashion client a few years ago. I had to beg my colleagues not to be left alone with him, and I was met with “joke” envy about how lucky I was. The message was clear — I should either get over it, or get another job. I have also had to physically push photographers away from partially nude girls getting changed backstage at fashion shows, and I’ve comforted a 16-year-old crying uncontrollably after a man in his 40s had barked at her to “Come on, be sexy darling! You can do better than THAT!”
This is only the tip of the iceberg of what models have to endure daily as part their unofficial job description. Last week, the model Cameron Russell used her Instagram account to publish dozens of accounts of sexual abuse and harassment from anonymous victims, under #MyJobShouldNotIncludeAbuse.
The lucrative love affair between fashion and film was strengthened by Weinstein, who in 2010 invited Sarah Jessica Parker to be chief creative officer for fashion house Halston Heritage, for which Parker also wore designs on Sex
and the City. Knowing that actresses are live adverts for fashion houses, Weinstein also strategically pushed his wife’s couture label, Marchesa, demonstrating his red-carpet savvy. US Vogue cover placements of his female actors were also thanks to his shrewd relationship with former editor Anna Wintour. Weinstein’s interest in fashion reflects two historically intertwined industries, which are representative of high-octane glamour, but also guilty of the covert abuse of power.
But are we on the precipice of change? On BBC Radio 4, Tom Hanks called for rigorous guidelines. “I think there should be a code of ethics posted in every lunchroom of every company on the planet that says here is the behaviour that is expected of you as an employee of this company,” he said.
SOCIAL MEDIA ‘OUTINGS’
Recently there has been a spate of “outings” for alleged harassment and assault on social media. “Social media provides a safe space and a community, and now we are seeing abusers being named on it too, which is key,” says Rebecca Pearson model and founder of modeltypeface.com. “No more rumours about a ‘certain casting director’ — actual names and details of the experience and what effect it had on the victim are now out there.”
So will this spell the end of Richardson’s place as feted photographer in the fashion world? He has always denied any abuse, but post-Weinstein, Richardson’s self-portraits of him having sex with his subjects are surely seen in a different light.
With the new breed of “woke” models such as Adwoa Aboah, who highlights social justice issues with her “Gurls talk” platform encouraging people to speak out about mental health, let’s hope the tragic exploitation of females will no longer be tolerated.