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A model called out the lack of diverse Victoria's Secret models — and now she's on a mission to become the first trans person to walk in the show

admin April 12, 2018

Leyna Bloom walks the runway for The Blonds fashion show during New York Fashion Week: The Shows at Gallery 1, Skylight Clarkson Sq on September 12, 2017

  • Model Leyna Bloom started a campaign to become the first trans person of color to walk in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.
  • Her campaign has gone viral on social media.
  • She previously criticized the runway show for not being diverse.
  • Bloom has been a professional model since 2014 and has experience as a swimsuit model.


Booking the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show is one of the most competitive gigs in the fashion industry. Every year, hundreds of women audition for a few coveted spots. Despite having a large pool of talent to choose from, the runway show is routinely criticized for selecting a cast that lacks body and racial diversity.

But model Leyna Bloom wants to change that. She has started a campaign to become the first trans person of color to walk in the fashion show — and it's picking up some serious steam on social media. 

"Trying to be the 1st Trans model of color walk a #VictoriaSecret Fashion show.#transisbeautiful #LeynaBloom," she tweeted on Monday.

At the time this post was published, her tweet had over 29,000 retweets and 96,000 likes. And although the campaign has faced some negative pushback, the general response has been mostly positive.

 

 

Bloom's tweet also caught the attention of professional model Nyle DiMarco, who won both "America's Next Top Model" and "Dancing With The Stars," and is an activist for people who are deaf. "Gorgeous! I support this," DiMarco wrote.

It seems like the concept has been on Bloom's mind for some time. In November 2017, when the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was filmed in Shanghai, China, Bloom put the lingerie brand on blast, claiming that the fashion show cast lacked diversity.

"All these women of color in the VS fashion show that's amazing right. But they still have way more white girls. It's like every time they added a woman of color they added another white girl. Next year they need to cast trans and curve models all colors not just Caucasians," she wrote.

Just a few months after her initial tweet, Bloom is now taking the lack of diversity into her own hands.

The model told Yahoo Lifestyle that the opportunity would be a dream come true.

"It's always been a dream for me, like so many others, not just trans — POC, all women, and some men even," she said. "This is a platform that glorifies femininity. I always felt in my most natural state I am heavenly. For my trans sisters, regardless of color, this will be a moment for us all."

An active model since 2014, Bloom walked the runway for brands like Chromat and the Blonds during New York Fashion Week in September 2017, according to Yahoo Lifestyle. In October 2017, she became the first trans person of color to model for Vogue India, Mic noted.

leyna bloom walks the runway for Chromat during New York Fashion Week in September 2017

Bloom told Yahoo Lifestyle that if she were cast in the show, she "will have the power to set the tone, and that would be the biggest leap up to date. Can you imagine what that would do for our world?"

She concluded: "We all have unique stories; we are just different, and we have every right to be. We just want to be represented, and maybe they will want to represent us too."

Leyna Bloom and representatives for Victoria's Secret didn't immediately respond to INSIDER's request for comment.

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SEE ALSO: People are accusing the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show of cultural appropriation over these 'nomadic' costumes

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