Star! Daily Blog - Strike A Pose

Strike A Pose

Blog by Sean Gehon, Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Every year, a young starlet rises above the rest to become Hollywood�s most talked about �It Girl�. This year, without a doubt, Golden Globe winner Jennifer Hudson is one of the most sought after young celebrities. Whether we�re talking about her potential Academy Award win or her upcoming album with music mogul Clive Davis, Jennifer Hudson probably won�t have to worry about hiding in Fantasia Barrino�s shadow ever again.(For those of you who have forgotten, Fantasia won the season of American Idol that Jennifer competed in.) To add to an already fantastic year, Jennifer Hudson is about to take her place in history.

Next month Jennifer Hudson will be gracing the cover of Vogue�s annual Power Issue. What�s interesting about her appearance on the cover? Jennifer Hudson is only the third African-American to grace the cover of Vogue in its over NINETY year history. Her place in history is marked by the fact that she is the FIRST black singer to grace to cover, following in the footsteps of Oprah Winfrey and Halle Berry. It�s shocking to hear that a magazine that many people hold in such high regard would fail to be as open minded as most of the world has become. I would like to think that a magazine that has led us through fashion trends and pop culture for over ninety years, would at least be able to break down the walls of racial prejudice.

I find it hard to understand that in over ninety years, you could only find three worthwhile African-Americans to put on your cover. Some of the heaviest hitters in pop culture history are black. You could look at the likes of Diana Ross or Aretha Franklin, maybe more recently Beyonce Knowles (and Destiny�s Child), Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston. Aren�t they notable as having made some sort of contribution to our culture as a whole? There are so many iconic people that have not only contributed to music as a whole, but for a fashion magazine, I�m completely stunned that Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks have yet to appeared on the cover of Vogue.

Many people feel prejudice every day. Whether because of their age, sex, sexual preference, or the colour of their skin, there is absolutely no reason for discrimination. We live on a planet that has existed for a countless amount of years. Society has been evolving for a shorter amount of time, but we�ve certainly had time to accept that women can vote, and people are people no matter the colour of their skin.

It�s unlikely that Vogue will ever read this blog. It's even less likely that they�ll bat an eyelash over the fact that they�ve neglected to put some of the world�s greatest performers on their cover. Change only happens with the simplest of ideas and by taking the biggest chances. Maybe now that Jennifer is making history and people are starting to notice the lack of diversity within that magazine, they�ll atone for their mistakes. Probably not, but we could always hope that a hole will open in the earth and devour Anna Wintour for her crimes. At least we can look at this in a glass half full kind of way� three is better than none� right?

Sean (I LOVE BLACK PEOPLE! --- Jerry Maguire)