Written by Kiana Sierra
I am a lover of fashion, from haute couture to street style, I absolutely adore discovering all the ways that style choices can reflect us as people and the world around us. As much as I love to admire the designs of iconic names such as Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior and Raf Simons, I also can’t help to admire the people and places from which their inspirations were drawn. Dolce and Gabbana’s S/S 2015 collection was obviously inspired by Mexico, while Valentino’s S/S 2016 show was admittedly inspired by Africa. People of color have inspired high fashion since before runways were ever being walked on, so why is it that big names in the fashion industry want so badly to destroy what inspires them?
While I am a lover of fashion, I am also a proud latina and I believe that we have some of the most beautiful cultures in the world. One of the most prominent parts of latin culture is the way we approach beauty. It is well known across the globe that latinas love to be over the top, our countries go crazy over curvy bodies, bright colors, full makeup, high heels and flashy jewellry. The typical latina look eventually became known as something commonly referred to as “narco beauty” the name is derived from the fact that the look became more prominent and popular during the era of Pablo Escobar and narco drug trafficking. The women who then fit look were most desired by wealthy narco men, which is what inspired many to adapt the look for themselves. This era caused a fashion revolution and Latin America never looked back.
I have always considered our beauty standards to be a unique and essential part of our culture, this is why I became so bothered and so saddened when I decided to watch the VICE documentary showcasing Colombia’s fashion week. I was expecting to see latin beauty standards showcased and celebrated to the highest degree, but a frown was quickly brought to my face when I discovered this was not the case. Instead, I saw people who attended the high fashion shows bashing and mocking the “narco beauty” that our cultures and community have loved and celebrated for so long. Many people involved in Colombia’s high fashion community admitted that they wanted to see “thin european looking models, modeling designs that could compete with the likes of Paris and Milan”. Hearing these comments almost angered me, the thought quickly sprung to my mind, “why does elite always have to equate to eurocentric?”.
Why can’t the beauty that we have created and admire compete with the looks popularized in Milan and Paris? What makes us lesser? Why should this significant part of our culture be erased just to further popularize the eurocentric beauty standard that has been pushed on every culture around the globe in order to make us feel as though we are not good enough? I for one never want to see narco beauty die, I see this beauty standard as being reflective of my culture and more importantly, reflective of me.
What broke my heart most was to see a group of latin people being sucked into a world of self loathing and detachment from everything that makes up our beautiful culture. To hear these very people saying that our beauty ideals looked “trashy” and “cheap” as compared to our european counterparts, broke my heart even further. If we allow narco beauty to die out, to be white washed and destroyed, then we too are allowing just another part of our cultures, of our countries and ourselves to be ripped away as well. I no longer want us as a people to be told that we are less and I want us to hold on desperately to all that our communities have to offer, even if it is something as small as what we call beautiful.
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