“We’re not here to work with brands that are perfect. I want to work with ones that need a bit of guidance and support. No one is beyond redemption, I’ve been a problematic asshole before but I’ve given myself space to change and I feel the same way about brands.”
An obvious first place to start, she said, is to stop photoshopping imagery to make women thinner and smoother.
“Start with your images, stop using one kind of body. Include the communities that actually spend money on your products; make clothes that are big enough so you can access the plus-size pound; market yourself to people with disabilities so you can access the purple pound; have venues that are accessible for everyone. If you’re wondering why disabled customers don’t like you it’s because they can’t get in the fucking building.”
She also wants to see fashion and luxury brands use age-appropriate models to target woman over 30.
“As I’m getting older, I have more money to spend and I’m seeing less and less products that feel like they were designed for me,” she said, observing that most of the models in high-end designer campaigns and editorials were in their teens and early 20s.
“What 14-year-old can afford a Prada jacket?” she asked, “it makes women feel actively rejected.”
As an advocate for feminist empowerment and a queer woman of color, Jamil has been open about her own body image and mental health journey which has included an eating disorder, experience with disability and being “body shamed” by British press after gaining weight following a steroid treatment for asthma.
Alongside this, she’s been on a very public journey, clocking up countless column inches along the way.
