Model Anok Yai sparked quite the debate on social media after she said she was "exhausted" and proceeded to call out the British Fashion Council after they awarded the 2024 Model of the Year award to trans model Alex Consani.
Consani, the first out trans model to ever win Model of the Year, expressed her excitement on Instagram, sharing celebratory photos and videos accompanied by the captions:
"IM SCREAMING I J WON MODEL OF YHE YEAR"
"Thank you so much @britishfashioncouncil and everyone that made this possible!"
"I cant even begin to process this"
Consani's popularity soared over the course of the last year, beginning with her online presence on TikTok.
She was also one of the first trans women to walk the Victoria's Secret runway before being featured on magazine covers, music videos and walking for Chanel, Alexander McQueen, Burberry, and Jacquemus... just to name a few.
But one other supermodel who has been in the limelight the last couple of years is Anok Yai, who many believe was the only person who could have beat out Consani for the 2024 title.
After Consani was announced as Model of the Year, Yai took to social media, dropping a photo that launched some heated discourse.
The model tweeted a photo of Ye on stage at the 2009 VMAs—you know, the moment he interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance speech to tell the world "Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time! One of the best videos of all time!"
Viewers of the post immediately called out Yai, and quickly she took to the platform once again to follow up.
"Alex, I love you and I’m so proud of you"
"British Fashion Council, thank you but I don’t want it anymore"
She then explained:
"If you have seen the effort that I’ve seen Alex put in; you would understand how proud I am of her."
"But Alex can be proud and I can be exhausted at the same time."
"It doesn’t take away how much love we have for each other"
Many on social media, however, felt the damage had already been done.
Others, however, feel Yai has every right to feel frustrated, with many pointing out that her original message was not targeted at Consani.
Consani hasn't commented on Yai's posts yet, but in her acceptance speech, she did express her gratitude for other models who paved the way for her, especially Black trans women.
“I can’t accept this award without thanking those who came before me, specifically the Black trans women who really fought for the space I’m in today.”
“Dominique Jackson, Connie Fleming, Aaron Rose Philip, and countless more who fought for the space that allowed me to flourish today.”
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