New York, New York. Fashion as an industry definitely still has a long way to go in regards to being inclusive of women of all shapes and sizes.
Tim Gunn wrote a wonderful piece for the Washington Post about this issue back in 2016, and although that was 5 years ago now, it’s still so relevant today.
Tim pointed out that he talked to tons of people in the fashion industry about why they don’t want to make clothing for women who don’t fit a certain shape and size, and what they said was pretty eye-opening.
“The overwhelming response is, “I’m not interested in her.” Why? “I don’t want her wearing my clothes.” Why? “She won’t look the way that I want her to look.” They say the plus-size woman is complicated, different, and difficult, that no two size 16s are alike,” Tim wrote.
He also went on to say that Karl Lagerfeld and Abercrombie & Fitch’s Mike Jefferies were quite public about their disdain for women with curves.
It’s terrible enough when designers themselves do not want to make inclusive sizes, but when models get body shamed for not looking like they’re starving in casting calls, that just takes things to a whole new level of awful.
Sadly, that’s exactly where a 22-year-old model named Anna Gantt, who is based in New York City, found herself while at a recent casting call.
TikTok; pictured above is Anna
While at the casting call, the client she was there to see made absolutely atrocious comments about Anna’s body.
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After she returned home, she took to TikTok to share the heartbreaking things that were said to her, and she couldn’t hold back tears as she described what had happened.
Anna said in a TikTok video that she has been a model for 7 years, and when she began her career, she was a size 0-2.
She struggled with an eating disorder for many years, and over the last 5 years, Anna has put on 35 pounds.
She clearly is still thin, and now she’s healthy at the size that she is instead of starving herself.
“I’m now a size 4-6, and I’m s*** every day because I’m not a skeleton, and I’m not unhealthy anymore,” Anna said through tears.
TikTok; pictured above is a screenshot of Anna sobbing in her video after being body-shamed in a casting call
She then said the producer and the casting director at the casting call she had just gotten back from both hurt her feelings.
As for what they cruelly told her?
“You’re not waify enough, we want to see your bones. The shoot is in early December you can lose some weight.”
It’s shocking and heartbreaking to watch Anna’s video and many people in the comments imploring her to name and shame the client who treated her so terribly.
Bebe Rexha left a comment on Anna’s video asking her to reach out so she could help connect her to an agent who would believe in her.
Judy Gao, a couture designer based in New Zealand, commented, “Can’t believe this is still happening in 2021.”
“It’s unacceptable. The industry needs to do better. You’re beautiful and perfect as is.”
@annavgantt Welcome to the reality of modeling in NYC. I’m so crushed. #fyp #nyc #modeling #fashion #model #nyclife