Mock Fashion Show Staged To Protest Teen Vogue’s Airbrushing Practices

Two teen girls organized a mock fashion show on New York City’s Time Square to protest the airbrushing of models by Teen Vogue magazine. Emma Stydahar, 17, and Carina Cruz, 16, held the mock fashion show earlier this week and delivered a petition requesting Teen Vogue stop the digital altering of models to Editor in Chief Amy Astley. The petition circulated by the pair of teen girls boasted 28,000 signatures, The Blaze reports. The teen mock fashion show organizers stated that Cruz did not discuss ending the Photoshopping practices of teen models and spent just five minutes with them, gave them copies of Teen Vogue and instructed them to “learn about the magazine,” Spark reports.

“It was kind of shocking, how rude they were to us,” Cruz told the Associated Press. “We assumed Teen Vogue would also want to hear what their readers think and do everything they can to help girls feel better about themselves and their bodies. Instead, they sat with us for five minutes and told us to do our homework.”

Earlier this year Julia Bluhm, 14, met with Seventeen Magazine Editor in Chief Ann Shiket and presented a petition supporting an end to altering models’ bodies through airbrushing and photoshopping. Teen Shokey promised the teen that in the magazine’s August issue she will not allow Photoshopping of model images.

A statement from Teen Vogue released via the Associated Press noted the fashion magazine is “always open to readers’ feedback” and that the popular teen periodical was “receptive to meeting with Emma and Carina to give them an opportunity to discuss their concerns.” In a previous statement on the topic of airbrushing and Photoshopping, Teen Vogue maintained the company makes a “conscious and continuous effort to promote a positive body image” to readers. Vogue has an estimated 1 million circulation with girls as young as 10 years old included in the teen fashion magazine’s readership.