Naomi Shimada鈥檚 8 women to celebrate this International Women鈥檚 Day
There’s never a bad time to celebrate women and the impact they’ve made upon the world, throughout history and in the present day. And while this is something that can (and should!) take place all year round, 8th March is International Women’s Day - 24 hours dedicated to honouring women across the globe, whether well-known or personal heroes.
To celebrate IWD 2021, model and author Naomi Shimada has listed eight women she wants the public to know more about - seven of whom you can hear on the new 麻豆社 Sounds podcast Beauty Fix.
Here are the 8 women inspirational women from Naomi’s Beauty Fix:
Ebonee Davis
She uses her voice. I see her as so much more than a model - we鈥檙e all more than models.鈥�
As the official first guest of Beauty Fix, Ebonee Davis sets the tone for the series, as she tells Naomi about her journey to become a model and how social justice is an integral part of her work.
“Me saying that she’s “wise beyond her years” doesn’t do her voice justice,” Naomi explains.
In 2016, Ebonee’s breakthrough fashion campaign coincided with the fatal police shooting of an African-American man, Philando Castile. Stirred by the tragic event, Ebonee wrote an open letter to the fashion industry calling out systemic racism; it made headlines.
As well as this, Ebonee is recognisable for consistently wearing her natural Afro hair - still a relatively rare occurrence in fashion. For Naomi, her steadfastness in standing in her truth makes her a force to be reckoned with.
“There’s something so powerful about what she’s saying - not just in terms of Black lives, but in connecting deeply to the core of ourselves,” Naomi continues. “This is the journey that she’s sharing. The term ‘model’ does make someone feel as if they are mute, and they’re just a person that’s objectified. She uses her voice. I see her as so much more than a model - we’re all more than models.”
Sinéad Burke
When she became the first little person to appear on the cover of British Vogue in 2019, writer and disability activist Sinéad Burke broke barriers that few had even realised were in place. This has been a common trend in her public career - she is also the first little person to attend the Met Gala, and mannequins made from her body were the first-ever mannequins made of a little person.
However, as much as she is hitting milestones in terms of visual representation, former teacher Sinéad spends most of her professional time schooling the fashion industry on the practical ways they can create an environment that is more inclusive, focusing on people with disabilities.
Through working to fix fashion to represent people of all shapes and sizes, she’s also expanding the very idea of beauty.
“She’s another complete force, in terms of making disability justice something that’s a lot more tangible for people to understand,” says Naomi.
“When you’re non-disabled, there are things you have the privilege of not having to think about - the usefulness of Velcro, and why zips make getting dressed harder for some people. Sinéad helps to illuminate these issues.”
Emmy Combs
A sensation on TikTok due to her impressive displays of make-up creativity, professional beauty therapist Emmy Combs was a perfect fit for this season of Beauty Fix. As well as creating some stunning looks, she also openly discusses having alopecia universalis: an auto-immune condition that has resulted in the complete loss of hair from her scalp and body.
“She doesn’t let having no hair stop her from expressing who she is,” says Naomi. “She has found makeup and stepping into these different characters as a tool of empowerment, playfulness and experimentation.”
A particularly unique element of Emmy’s craft is her special effects displays, transforming her face into a galaxy of stars and planets in one video, and an animated doughnut in the next.
“It’s creating an illusion without her feeling as if she’s faking it. She just uses them as a tool of expression.”
Kadeeja Khan
Kadeeja dropped out of school because she was so bullied - yet here she is today."
Experiences with acne are often discussed in terms of a rite of passage during adolescence, but merely a distant memory in adulthood. For many, however, it’s something that you can spend years hiding and being ashamed of - especially in an age when technology can easily make any real-life blemishes disappear on the screen.
When Kadeeja Khan, a skincare influencer and model, decided to drop the filters and layers of makeup and reveal her bare skin to Instagram for the first time, it gained lots of attention for its candid display of her natural face. This kick-started her public persona as someone who promotes beauty being more than skin deep - something Naomi believes we need more of.
“Kadeeja’s approach to beauty is something that’s a lot deeper than just make-up,” Naomi explains. “It’s easy to say things like: ‘Don’t let society dictate how you feel about yourself!’
“Of course, those are words that you want to stick to, and you think that’s how you want to live your life. But it’s different when you have front-facing, severe acne - where people look at you and can treat you like an outcast. Kadeeja dropped out of school because she was so bullied - yet here she is today.
“Even though she’s had this crazy journey with her skin, she wouldn’t change it for the world because it made her grow to have a more rooted, grounded value system that wasn’t just based on looks. Her story is a story of bravery.”
Deba Hekmat
One of the defining characteristics of Generation Z is that they’re the first generation to grow up completely with the Internet. In terms of young people in the West, there are few that have known a world before social media - particularly Instagram, and the way that the constant stream of filtered images can have an effect on how you view yourself.
Nineteen-year-old Deba Hekmat, however, couldn’t care less about what internet trends and long-held standards tell us is beautiful - she’s chosen to define it for herself. Determined to put Kurdish beauty on the fashion map, Deba has modelled for streetwear and catwalk brands and believes her body hair is for showing, not for shaving.
“She’s somebody who’s only ever going to be herself and you can feel that instantly,” Naomi remembers, thinking back to meeting Deba over Zoom. “To have that kind of energy, and understanding, and self-awareness at age 19, she blew my mind! I was so juiced after meeting her.
“Whether it’s her signature tracksuits or her refusal to hide or groom her body hair, she knows that a westernised idea of beauty is not something that she wants to subscribe to. That’s radical.”
Charlie Craggs
Transphobia is on the rise in the UK, with statistics showing a 25% increase in transphobic hate crimes between 2019 and 2020.
But since 2013, Charlie Craggs has been steadily trying to stamp out prejudice through her initiative, Nail Transphobia: an organisation that raises awareness of trans issues and recruits allies while giving manicures. Though it began as a university project, it has since grown into a strong movement with international recognition; for Naomi, Charlie’s role as an educator makes her an essential voice for her community.
“So much of what we fear is the unknown. Charlie’s taking the next step and saying, ‘You know what? So much of transphobia comes from people not knowing other trans people - how do we bridge that?’
“Of course, she doesn’t have to do this, but Charlie knows that it’s about sitting with people, looking them in the eye and getting them to see her humanity, as well as other trans people’s.”
Zandra Rhodes
With her signature shock of bright pink hair, Zandra Rhodes is someone who has no problem standing out in a crowd. A fashion designer since 1969, her perception of beauty is unaffected by fads that pass as quickly as they emerge. Instead, she considers how she presents herself as honest expressions of how she’s feeling in the moment - and rolling with it from there.
“Zandra does not give a f***!” Naomi laughs. “She has done whatever the hell that she’s wanted, all along and still today in an age of the perfect influencer aesthetic. I’m so bored of that! I just don’t find that interesting at all. Zandra shows that beauty is from character, and living, and experience.”
Céline Semaan Vernon
Though she began her fashion career as a designer, Céline Semaan Vernon is a particular inspiration for Naomi due to her work with Slow Factory Foundation: an organisation she founded in order to share ideas on how to tangibly make a change in the fashion industry and beyond – from increasing sustainable production methods in fashion to fair pay for garment workers. Through the Open Education lecture model, anyone is able to learn about some of the issues that affect the industry.
“I’m so moved by what she’s doing,” she explains. “The root of so many of our problems is that we don’t understand how things work, and how systems continue to be a huge problem. Education initiatives are so important - spaces where people can ask questions and engage with new material.
“Céline’s doing work at the intersection of environment, social justice and the fashion industry. We’re at a pivotal moment in time and all these aspects are connected - she helps weave them together for us to see the full picture.”
Beauty Fix with Naomi Shimada is available on 麻豆社 Sounds - new episodes released every Friday.
