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Making What Others Say is a Flaw, into a Success Story – Winnie Harlow

Posted on February 22, 2022

By Anna Ludmirsky,

The modeling industry has always been an unloving and unaccepting form of art riddled with a brutally strict list of requirements to be successful in it. Height, skin tone, weight, every inch of your body is placed under scrutiny and every flaw is judged and “fixed” to fit a specific standard of beauty. Only recently have we seen diversity on the runway from plus size, to cultural, and even people with vitiligo, like Winnie Harlow.  

Winnie Harlow is a Jamaican-Canadian woman who grew up in Etobicoke, Ontario. Kids tend to mirror the standards their parents and media share, causing them to call out her “imperfections”,  resulting in bullying about vitiligo, a skin condition that she possesses. However, that didn’t stop Winnie from being vocal about struggles with vitiligo, which led her to become discovered, pursuing modeling, competing on America’s Next Top Model, and becoming a household name for most people and those familiar with the world of fashion.

Winnie Harlow is a strong individual, being a black woman is difficult in itself in the media but also having to constantly face scrutiny online for vitiligo has proven how driven and confident she is in her beauty. You’d be surprised when hearing her story regarding growing up bullied for her skin condition when you see how confident she reads on and off the runway, which proves how no matter how much life throws curveballs at you, you can still make it on top. I personally believe every photograph taken of Winnie is a work of art, whether it be candid or professionally shot. Winnie is naturally alluring while radiating energy that oftentimes leaves myself and others speechless.  

NEW YORK, NY – MAY 07: Winnie Harlow attends the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

Citations 

 (n.d.). Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://wallpapercave.com/winnie-harlow-wallpapers. 

Muller, M. G. (2018). Winnie Harlow Speaks Out Against Those Labeling Her a ‘Vitiligo Sufferer.’ Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://www.wmagazine.com/story/winnie-harlow-vitiligo-sufferer-no. 

Galai, N. (2018). How Winnie Harlow created history at Victoria’s Secret show. Rediff. Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://www.rediff.com/getahead/report/glamour-winnie-harlow-created-history-at-victorias-secret-show/20181112.htm. 

Keyes-Bevan, B. (2020, February 20). Winnie Harlow: Her emotional story with vitiligo. Health Insight. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://www.healthinsight.ca/advocacy/winnie-harlow-her-emotional-story-with-vitiligo/# 

Reis, M. (2019). Winnie Harlow desfilando no Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show pela primeira vez. Rio Magazine. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://www.rio-magazine.com/winnie-harlow-a-modelo-que-quebrou-paradigmas-para-mulheres-com-vitiligo-2/. 

Simoncik, B. (2015). Winnie Harlow Rocks Dior for GQ Portugal Shoot. Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/208854501448862841/. 

Spencer, H. (2015, October 9). ‘I’ve learnt to listen to myself:’ Winnie Harlow on shaking off self-doubt. Grazia. Retrieved February 8, 2022, from https://graziadaily.co.uk/celebrity/news/winne-harlow-confidence-social-media/ 

Tachman, K. (2020). 7 Rings: Winnie Harlow Shines Bright in Diamonds. Natural Diamonds. Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://www.naturaldiamonds.com/hollywood-pop-culture/7-rings-winnie-harlow-shines-bright-in-diamonds/. 

Vogue India. (2020). Supermodel Winnie Harlow puts on a daring display. Retrieved February 9, 2022, from https://www.rediff.com/getahead/report/glamour-can-you-guess-the-indian-sweet-this-model-loves/20200227.htm.  

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