Model with natural hair posts moving account of discrimination on ANTM
The modelling world is not renowned for being particularly nurturing or sensitive to young talent.
Former Australia's Next Top Model contestant and current dream girl Nyadak "Duckie" Thot has spoken out about discrimination in the modeling industry; more specifically, the humiliation she experienced while competing on the reality show in 2013.
In an Instagram post, the Australian model who was born in South Sudan, mentioned she had just done a shoot with jewelry company Dinosaur Designs, who kept her hair natural.
In contrast, she recounted a ANTM photoshoot where hair stylists told her she would have to cornrow her own locks as they "didn’t know how to cornrow natural hair."
"I was extremely upset and embarrassed that they 'didn't know how' to cornrow my natural hair when at the end of the day that's their job. I sat in front of the mirror silently crying before my shoot doing my own hair, cameras rolling while all the other girls had hair stylists..."
Thot also recounted the incident with Teen Vogue recently, saying it had a profound effect on her.
"I felt like a joke during that whole scene to be honest. And, I felt like that many other times during the show. I got a lot of backlash on social media for my weight gain, the colour of my skin and my hair."
Since the Instagram post, Thot has received floods of support on social media, with the notable exception of model and fellow U.S. Top Model alumni, Winnie Harlow.
Harlow appeared to significantly backpedal after apparently posting a picture of Thot’s Dinosaur Designs campaign on Snapchat and calling her a “cauliflower head.”
Thot responded to Harlow's bullying with an updated Instagram caption, saying "It's not fun being bullied for something you can't control and to have a top model woman of colour who I thought encouraged acceptance and self love call me out for rocking my natural hair, isn't cool at all...."
They say success is the best revenge, and Nyadak Thot is having no problems in that department.
