Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show Is Cancelled This Year (Welp)

A few years ago, I stopped shopping at Victoria’s Secret. As with most things that deal with social justice, I realized that I couldn’t continue to support a brand that capitalized off of my dollars and yet dismissed the majority of people. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, VS has been in the news a LOT over the past few years for their lack of diversity on and off the runway, but also some of the wild things Ed Razek has previously said around LGBTQ communities and women.

After having one of their worst tune-ins last year, it’s been reported that the annual fashion show isn’t showing this year. According to Shanina Shaik, a 28-year-old model who has walked in the fashion show consistently, the show apparently is cancelled. In an interview, she said, “Unfortunately the Victoria’s Secret show won’t be happening this year. It’s something I’m not used to because every year around this time I’m training like an angel. But I’m sure in the future something will happen, which I’m pretty sure about. I’m sure they’re trying to work on branding and new ways to do the show because it’s the best show in the world.”

Okay, let’s backtrack a bit. Sometime last year, Ed Razek, chief marketing officer of L Brand — the parent company to Victoria’s Secret — spoke out and said some pretty disturbing remarks about transgender models in his Vogue interview. Originally geared around a convo for plus-size models, it slowly turned into something more as Razek discussed the appeal they seek to create for the VS audience.

“It’s like, why doesn’t your show do this? Shouldn’t you have transsexuals in the show?” Razek said.

“No. No, I don’t think we should. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special. That’s what it is. It is the only one of its kind in the world, and any other fashion brand in the world would take it in a minute, including the competitors that are carping at us. And they carp at us because we’re the leader.”

Yes, he later clarified the statement…well, tried to, but nonetheless the work had been done. That statement, paired with the declining viewership of the show, just made for this to be a moment that we’re all passing on. So, how do I feel?

I feel great. Although there are VS angels who are fighting for diversity and inclusion on the runway, the importance that surrounds standing up for what is right is imperative. As a Black woman in the fashion industry, I see and understand this dynamic differently — cause and activism have to happen if I say that I want something to change. I hope that this particular moment in history continues to prove that when we speak up, people have to listen.