A girl who used to be bullied for her vitiligo – the same condition Michael Jackson claimed made his skin turn white – is going to be on the next (the seventy billionth?! No, not really, it’s just the 21st!) series of America’s Next Top Model.
Chantelle Brown-Young received insults, such as ‘zebra’ and ‘cow’, because of the white patches on her skin. However, she’s already on the road to modelling, having been shot by Nick Knight and walked shows before, according to MailOnline.
She also has 100,000 Instagram followers, who eagerly support the self-described ‘vitiligo spokesmodel’, and recently did a talk at her high school about discrimination. She also does YouTube testimonials about her experiences with the skin condition.
In a video, posted when she was just 17, she explains: ‘People have black skin, people have brown skin, I have both.
‘When I got older, it got harder because when kids get older they get meaner, so I went through a lot of bullying and people calling me like zebra or cow, so it was really hard growing up.’
She then learned to accept her individual beauty, however. Something we’re sure ANTM boss Tyra Banks would appreciate.
Chantelle explains: ‘I loved myself. And with that, opportunities start to fall into my lap. And I thank God for all of them. Try loving yourself.’
In another video, the ANTM ‘pitch video’ where contestants (male and female this time) have a chance to put their goals out there, Chantelle shows just how far she has come. She says: ‘I am the underdog and I want to prove that one can follow one’s dreams despite all the flaws and setbacks.’
Will we spend a hungover day watching back-to-back episodes of America’s Next Top Model and root for Chantelle some time in the near future? Definitely.
Follow Sophie on Twitter @sophwilkinson
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.