Diane Von Furstenberg | Baby Phat | Tracy Reese

At New York's Fashion Week many top designers chose to employ one or two black models and a few Asians in shows and some had none, Reuters reporters who attended over 40 shows by found. Blacks, and blacks in combination with another race, make up about 13 percent of Americans, U.S. Census data shows.

Diane von Furstenberg and Baby Phat were among the few that had a more equal racial mix of models. At least half the models used for Baby Phat, which features Kimora Lee Simmons' glitzy urban designs, were black or Asian.

J. Alexander, a runway coach on TV's "America's Next Top Model" who helped produce Baby Phat's show, said the standard for using black models is "two girls, three maximum" per show.

"And you normally get one to make it clear that she is obviously dark too so they don't get any lip from journalists or any backlash for being racist," he said.

Several designers and a few models, including top black model Alek Wek, were reticent to comment on race, although Wek acknowledged difficulties at the start of her career.

"There were people who criticized me but I took no notice," the Sudanese model told Reuters. "You can see I am black, that's who I am.

"Whether you are black or white, modeling is hard work and you have to be really determined to succeed." [SOURCE]

Kimora Lee Simmon's Baby Phat and KLS Collection











Tracy Reese Collection

Labels: Kimora Lee Simmons