BLACK BEAUTY: PAT EVANS

photo credit: unknown internet pic

Yes, it is still hard for today's young black models to make a name for themselves in the fashion industry, but imagine how it was in the 60s and 70s when many magazines and designers flat out refused to put women of color on their covers and runways. And you were only landing a cover if you had a certain "European/exotic" look: straight hair, lighter skin and slender facial features...

 Black model Pat Evans tried her best to change that and took a stand against racism and discrimination in the industry every moment she could! Tired of being told that her dark skin and her beautiful curly afro needed to be straightened so that she could "make it", Evans cut her hair off  as a loud but silent protest against the industry's beauty standards and ended up booking more shoots and runways than ever before!

The only word that could describe her was FIERCE! Evans rocked her baldy with style and grace and was as fly as she could be with that chrome dome! She appeared in Vogue, and Harper's Bazaar, but most notably, she modeled for a few Ohio Players album covers. She never stopped being an advocate for black models and published a honest but scathing article in Essence condemning racism and discrimination in the fashion industry and abruptly ended her career. She had a voice and used was not afraid to use it along with her beauty to take a stand against unfair treatment in an industry that has still not changed  much...