Kimora Speaks Out

I was tweeting a guy on Twitter Saturday, wondering whether Twitter was making me read less. Then, we started talking about being informed via information shared on Twitter. I told him that I felt like I was getting more from Twitter than I did from regular, mainstream media. Another guy agreed. So, today, Kimora Lee Simmons shared this tweet:

As a mother+a designer I take real issue w the sexualization of our young girls! Wth?! http://t.co/hicys4d #shame #fauxfab #fb

Instantly, that peaked my interest. So, I clicked the link and found myself just as disgusted as she was. It was an article about new padded bikini tops for girls as young as those in the 2nd grade. You read that right, the 2nd grade. Just appalling. What have we come to in this world that we are telling girls as young as 7 that they need more cleavage in order to be acceptable? It's just terrible! But, what is awesome is Kimora's willingness to say that's it's appalling.

Kimora could have just pretended to never have even seen that article. Never sent a tweet about it. I'm sure there are some folks at Abercrombie & Fitch who would take issue with her saying she has a problem with the tops. But, in the same manner that we all have come to know and love, she said, eff it and let us know what she thinks about the situation. This is why Kellwood Company's poor handling of their relationship separation with Kimora is going to cost them. She is as real as it gets and her supporters know it.

Kellwood's phony attempts to emulate her style will always fall short. Hell, some people first realized she was gone from Phat Fashions after that faux Ming Lee and Aoki Lee ad showed up in People Style Watch a few weeks ago. As soon as they saw that phony ad they knew.

I won't stand by and watch as Kellwood tries to get away with this and I hope that you won't either. Do not buy any Baby Phat or Phat Farm clothing! None of it. Check out all of the great new things that Kimora is working on at her newly designed site www.kls.com, including a new skincare line, new children's line and greater attention on her flagship brands, KLS and Kouture by Kimora. --Sugar

It's Kimora This Time, Who's Next?

First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me. --Attributed to Martin Niemoller, protestant pastor and social activist

While the impetus for Niemoller to speak the oft-quoted words above was a very dark time in world history, they can be applied and have been applied to many different situations. I think they apply quite well to the situation involving Kimora Lee Simmons' dismissal from Baby Phat/Phat Fashions because the relative silence about the matter has been deafening. Where is the outrage by Black media, including radio? Where is Al Sharpton? Where is Tavis Smiley? Where is Essence Magazine's reactive piece? Because while it may be Kimora on the receiving end of this unjust action now, it will be someone else before long.

How can this story be getting such little attention when an absolute injustice has occurred? No, nobody was killed or beaten, but an assault on the spirit of innovation has taken place and that does deserve a closer examination. Kimora is one of only a handful of women of color in an industry that is notorious for discriminatory practices. At the very least, I expect that some of the opinion-makers in Black America will ask some questions about what's happened here. Kimora has stated repeatedly that she did not want to leave Phat Fashions and yet Kellwood Company unceremoniously dismissed her without offering the customer base, predominately urban and African-American might I remind you, a single explanation. In fact, they are still poaching off of sales of Baby Phat wear as customers continue to make purchases, assuming that they are doing so in support of Kimora.

And, lest we forget, the issue is about more than fashion. It's also about the allegations that Kellwood Company dismissed Kimora in part due to the fact that she, a 6 foot tall mother of three, including a not yet two year old baby, allegedly wears a size 10. The allegations alone should have created a firestorm in the media. Discussions about women of color and body image, especially what's acceptible in the "mainstream", the message being delivered to young girls about what makes them beautiful, all of it. Instead, it's been so quiet it's eerie and I don't like it.

So, Kellwood, I will do the job that the media, both mainstream and otherwise, has failed to do. And, I'm pretty good at it, as evidenced by you snooping around here already. But, I'm only just getting started. I didn't have time to go down into the "belly of the beast" this past weekend, but I will and momentum is slowly building. Stay alert. No respect? No dollars. --Sugar