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" I want to use my voice to better health care for pregnant women. "
Philomena Kwao
Voice
Care
Health
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" When I started, there was only one other girl that I could name that was even close to my shade. I didn't understand why there weren't more black plus-size models with darker skin tones. It feels like the final frontier of beauty is to be black, to be plus, to have natural hair. "
Philomena Kwao
Girl
Skin
Name
" When I finally discovered the 'Sports Illustrated' swimsuit issue, I browsed through archives and saw a picture of an incredibly stunning model, Damaris Lewis. Her images inspired me, and I imagined being in the magazine myself. Never in a million years did I dream it would actually happen. "
Philomena Kwao
Sports
Dream
Her
" I'm from Ghana, in West Africa, and all the women in Ghana absolutely love shea butter. We use it for everything, head to toe. I've used it all my life. "
Philomena Kwao
Life
My Life
Women
" I believe I'm beautiful because I'm me. I also believe that if you can find beauty in everything, you can allow that to change your mind-set, and doing so makes you a happier person. "
Philomena Kwao
Change
Beautiful
Beauty
" Fast fashion, whilst having increased the accessibility of stylish clothes for millions, has unfortunately resulted in many horrific practises, such as child labour, that exploit millions of people around the world in poorer, developing countries. This something that has to change, and we can all start by reflecting on where our clothes come from. "
Philomena Kwao
World
Fashion
People
" The #SwimSexy campaign is redefining standards of beauty, and I'm proud to be a part of it. My hope is that this campaign connects with women and girls of all ages, body-types, races, and backgrounds. "
Philomena Kwao
Hope
Proud
Women
" I think it's just that the fashion industry can only accept one thing at a time. It's like, 'OK, well, if we're going to add plus, then let's keep it hourglass and white.' "
Philomena Kwao
Fashion
Think
Time
" I think the real problem is all the negative connotations people have with that term. They think, 'Oh my God! I don't want to be 'plus-size!'' But people attach too much significance to terms. We can't let these terms define us or our beauty. "
Philomena Kwao
Beauty
Problem
Think
" I think the fashion industry and the media industry in general have a responsibility to make sure that they celebrate the rich differences in all our backgrounds to make sure we don't fall into the trap of reducing beauty to one specific mold. "
Philomena Kwao
Responsibility
Fall
Celebrate
" Fat is fat. This goes back to the word 'plus.' We describe things. We are humans, and we need to describe things. "
Philomena Kwao
Back
Word
Things
" If you call me 'fat,' it doesn't bother me because I just don't care. "
Philomena Kwao
Because
You
Care
" I think that we need to allow words to be words. If my self-esteem and my self-worth linger on words that are used to describe me, then you have a problem in itself. "
Philomena Kwao
Think
Words
Problem
" You cannot determine someone's health by the BMI alone. There are many factors that contribute to the health on an individual. If we're going to start using BMI to police straight size models, what's next? The plus size industry? To be honest, if it was down to BMI alone, most plus size models - including myself - wouldn't be working. "
Philomena Kwao
Start
Alone
Health
" My goal is always to help other women with programs that help them live better lives, especially is areas where health care is missing. Both of my parents are from Ghana, where there is a need for health care in the smaller villages. "
Philomena Kwao
Parents
Care
Women
" My best advice is to celebrate your own unique features and never put them down. There is beauty in individuality, and it's so important to appreciate everything your body allows you to do. It's OK to have a down day - we all do from time to time - but it's not OK to compare yourself to others. "
Philomena Kwao
Day
Best
Body
" For me, less is more. I don't often wear makeup, but when I do, a little concealer and some powder go a long way. "
Philomena Kwao
Me
Makeup
Long
" By being present and being true, I believe that, in my own way, I am promoting diversity. "
Philomena Kwao
Present
True
Diversity
" I've inherited so much culture, beauty, and love, and I'm the perfect mix of Philomena. "
Philomena Kwao
Love
Much
Perfect
" The curvy community has really given me a voice because people want to see someone who looks like they do. They want to know their beauty is valid. "
Philomena Kwao
Community
Beauty
Me
" We have spent so many years looking at images of another beauty ideal and so many years taking in magazine covers and films that represent a beauty standard that we'll never meet. People don't realize that there are makeup artists and hairstylists behind the scenes - even in something as simple as a 'candid' Instagram photo. "
Philomena Kwao
Simple
People
Makeup
" My mom and my sisters have helped me to be comfortable with who I am. It's a process of loving yourself as you are. I can say that it's been a journey. I see the changes little by little. "
Philomena Kwao
Me
Yourself
Mom
" New York City is one of the best cities in the world for walking: it's virtually impossible to get lost. "
Philomena Kwao
World
City
Best
" Health management is my passion, and I hope to further my career in that area in the future. "
Philomena Kwao
Career
Future
Health
" There's not many models in the U.S. that have my depth - like, really dark skin - that are also plus size. Skin color has been one of those things we haven't really, really addressed on a large, widespread scale. "
Philomena Kwao
Color
Things
Skin
" I hope to show people everywhere that you can be unapologetically you and still succeed. I also hope that by using more diverse models, brands can see that there is power in diversity, and not shy away from doing something new for fear of failure. The effects are bigger than just the fashion industry. "
Philomena Kwao
Diversity
Failure
Fear
" When you model, you don't really have control over your image. It can be a good thing, it can be a bad thing. It can be a good thing in the sense that, actually, you have to get reintroduced to yourself. You don't always get that opportunity in your normal life. You can kind of hide from yourself. "
Philomena Kwao
Life
Good
Yourself
" My journey into modeling began completely by chance. I was in school finishing up my master's degree in health management and policy when a friend entered me into an online modeling competition. "
Philomena Kwao
Competition
Health
Me
" While education is hugely important, the ways in which women are portrayed in their communities are equally important. Portraying women as victims keeps women in a captive space and denies them of their agency: their ability to fight back and take ownership of their situation. "
Philomena Kwao
Women
Back
Education
" It isn't hard to see how the lack of representation affects the self esteem of many women world wide. "
Philomena Kwao
Hard
Self
Lack
" I try not to assign labels to myself. Sometimes I shop in the plus section, and sometimes I don't. I feel we attach too much significance to labels, and ultimately, it doesn't really matter. "
Philomena Kwao
Feel
Sometimes
Try