Supermodel Iman Shares The Way Iman Cosmetics Has Been Dedicated to Diversity Since Day One

The #PullUpOrShutUp barrier began by Uoma Beauty creator Sharon Chuter has pushed brands to become transparent about the lack of diversity within their corporate groups. Seeing the dearth of Black folks on staff in many famous firms is frankly disappointing, however in addition, there are lots of brands which were dedicated to uplifting and serving the Black community as day one to support. About June 10, Iman Makeup shared its own group projections (100 per cent girls, 85 percent Black) and a statement from the creator, Iman Abdulmajid, roughly exactly what this service for your community has seemed like because she began the brand in 1994. 

The supermodel uploaded a video to her Instagram account showing various campaign images from her cosmetics line featuring women of color. She starts the caption by quoting herself: “If beauty is the eye of the beholder, let the beholder be you.” 

In the caption, Abdulmajid also recalls some moments of discrimination she’s experienced during her modeling career. It was common for makeup artists to ask if she brought her own foundation because they didn’t carry her color 

Creating a diverse range of foundation shades was important to Iman, but it was deeper than that — it was about affirming Black girls’s worth and beauty. She writes, “It was appealing to a deep psychological need that I think all Black women needed at that time: To be told that they were beautiful, invited to sit at the table, and courted in high style: women of all skin tones want to look good when they rule the world.”

Sadly, the issues Iman suffered during her EARLY modeling days still continues widely today. From 2018, Duckie Thot shared with Es, The London Evening Standard’s Magazine, that she brings her own base to shoots. As Aimee Simeon reported for Refinery29, Black models were still having to fix their own makeup backstage at Fashion Week in 2020. 

While we can only hope that the #PullUpOrShutUp initiative provides tangible change in the beauty industry, it’s significant to support those who have always been all about it. To follow brands responses to the #PullUpOrShutUp challenge, check out the Instagram account Chuter created to track them all. 

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