Aaron Rose Philip wants to break down barriers for models with disabilities

PARIS ⁠— As 2021 drew to a close and the traditional year-end summaries and top 10s began to appear online, Aaron Rose Philip had a question for the Twitterverse: "How is the first disabled model to walk for a major luxury? isn't a wheelchair brand ever worthy of being a newcomer, a star, or a "social engine"?"

The 21-year-old model was referring to her appearance on the Moschino catwalk for her Spring 2022 show at New York Fashion Week, which she said had not received adequate recognition. It was his final call to action to an industry that often pretends to promote diversity, but has rarely opened its doors to people with disabilities.

Since then, Philip has racked up cutting-edge editorials for Interview and ShowStudio, and appeared in Collina Strada's Fall 2022 collection video. She is an ambassador for Amazon Luxury Stores and also has a partnership with Mugler fragrances.

Signed to Community New York, she is now also represented in the UK by Milk Management. And Philip recently made his broadcast debut by co-hosting the web series "The Truth Is" on Yahoo's In The Know video platform, interviewing guests including actor Tommy Dorfman and drag artist Junior Mintt. .

In 1998, when Alexander McQueen featured Paralympic athlete Aimee Mullins on his runway, it was almost unheard of for luxury brands to work with models with disabilities. In recent years, this has gradually changed.

For example, Gucci featured model Ellie Goldstein, a model with Down syndrome, as the face of a 2020 beauty campaign, while Rihanna used models with disabilities in her Savage x Fenty fashion shows. Jillian Mercado made her wheelchair runway debut two years ago for New York independent brand The Blonds.

Moschino, Spring 2022 Masato Onoda for WWD

Last year, Philip became the first wheelchair model to appear on the catwalk of a mainstream luxury brand, a career hiatus she attributes to Moschino creative director Jeremy Scott and his own perseverance.

"It's something I've been working on for five years," she says. "And it finally happened, and for that reason, I'm completely honoured. But I don't want to stop there. I didn't just do this to make it a once-in-a-lifetime moment. My career is serious. I want to have the career that my peers are capable of having as able-bodied people."

The Antigua-born model, who moved to the United States as a child, is campaigning for mainstream recognition and visibility, not only as a disabled person, but also as a black transgender woman ⁠— a category she also considers under-represented in fashion.

"Disability should be one of the most important conversations in fashion, but I want to say something else," she told WWD in a lively Zoom chat from Ne...