Shortly before the taping of the Victoria Secret Fashion Show on November 8, Vogue published an interview with the special’s “chief architects” Ed Razek and Monica Mitro, in which Razek (also chief marketing officer of L Brands) dismissed a question about whether or not a transgender model could ever walk the VS stage. “Shouldn’t you have transsexuals in the show?,” he mused. “No. No, I don’t think we should. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. It’s a 42-minute entertainment special.”
Razek subsequently apologized for his comments, and Victoria’s Secret Chief Executive Jan Singer has since resigned, but in case you thought she was hoping the whole debacle had slide back under the radar, headliner Halsey took the opportunity during the fashion show’s actual airing to make sure everyone knows where she stands. “As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I have no tolerance for a lack of inclusivity,” the singer wrote on Instagram Sunday night. “Especially not one motivated by stereotype.”
So, to any new young fans checking out her posts due to her Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show appearance tonight, Halsey says “hi” and directs them to GLSEN, an organization dedicated to LGBTQ youth, where she says she has made a donation. “If you’re a trans person reading this, and these comments have made you feel alienated or invalidated please know that you have allies,” Halsey concludes. “We stand in solidarity. And complete and total acceptance is the only ‘fantasy’ that I support … ”
