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Ajak Deng Announces She Is ‘Done’ With The Fashion Industry

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 05:50 PST, Feb 26, 2016

Ajak Deng, who has walked the catwalks of Givenchy, Chloe, Lanvin and many other highly-respected fashion brands, has quit the modeling business, because she is done dealing with the “fakes” and “lies,” according to People.

While her name may not sound familiar, those who keep an eye on latest fashion shows and catwalks will surely recognize her face. Ajak Deng announced via her Instagram account on Tuesday that she is done with the modeling business and that she is set to return home in Australia.

“I am happy to announce that I am officially done with the fashion industry, I will be moving back to Australia in order to live the life that I fully deserved. Which is real life.”

Since debuting as a runway model in September 2008 for a number of spring shows in New York, the 24-year-old model has presented clothes for countless famous designers and has been included in a great number of fashion campaigns including Chloe, Calvin Klein and Sally Hansen.

Ajak Deng had lots of projects coming, but the model has suddenly decided to end her modeling career. The model didn’t elaborate on the “fakes” and “lies” part in her Instagram post. She just continued that her life is “too short” for this “dramatic life.”

“I am thankful and grateful for every sweet souls that I have crossed path with.”

In the past, Ajak Deng has blasted the fashion industry for racism on several occasions. In 2014, the model reportedly accused Balmain via her Twitter account (the account was then deleted) of removing her from the brand’s campaign for “being black.”

In 2010, Ajak Deng made quite a statement about racial issues in the fashion industry by participating in Alber Elbaz’s Lanvin runway and leading a group of five ethnically diverse models down the runway.

Ajak Deng, originally from Australia, arrived in San Antonio at the age of 12. At the age of 16, she signed to Trump modelling agency and moved to New York. In 2008, the model decided to skip the fashion weeks in Milan, Paris and London in order to finish high school in Texas.

The model was filmed by Jeremy Kost backstage at the Zac Posen show for New York magazine. During one of the collections for Zac Posen, Ajak Deng made headlines by falling on the runway.

Ajak Deng’s official fashion manager, Stephen Bucknall, revealed in an interview with Melbourne paper The Herald Sun that he struggled to book jobs for his client back when she was in Australia, because Australian designers aren’t eager to pay for “dark-skinned girls.”

“The budgets probably aren’t big enough for [Deng], because she’s a big-money earner, but they will spend the money on a Miranda Kerr or a Jess Hart.”

Ajak Deng, who is only 26, is now going to live the life she “fully deserves,” as stated by the model herself. Referring to her new life as “real life,” the model is quitting the fashion industry at a crucial moment for ethnically diverse models. Ethnical diversity is being addressed in such campaigns as Zac Posen’s Black Models Matter bags designed by Ashely Chew.

Ajak Deng’s Instagram post about quitting the fashion industry triggered quite an uproar among her fans, with some questioning her move, and others promising that they would support the model in the industry if she stays. Later, Deng posted a separate post featuring her selfie with a caption that says that she’s happy with her decision.

“Thank you for your concerns but I am good and very happy with my decision. I am a fighter and a go getta, I will figured out what to do next.”

[Photo by Cindy Ord / Getty Images]

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