Victoria's Secret's new hire model has Down syndrome



Puerto Rican model 24-year-old Sofia Jirau is Victoria's Secret's first signed model with Down syndrome, making her debut in the lingerie and women's wear brand's latest inclusivity campaign.

In 2019, Jirau made headlines after launching her own online store, Alavett, which offers a range of affordable accessories.

What are the details?

Jirau made the announcement on Valentine's Day, following the debut of the brand's new Love Cloud Collection.

Victoria's Secret creative director Raúl Martinez told NBC News, "Love Cloud Collection is a major moment in the brand’s evolution. From the cast of incredible women that bring the collection to life, to the incredible inclusive spirit on set, this campaign is an important part of the new Victoria’s Secret standard we are creating."

Jirau shared the news on Instagram earlier this week.

Courtesy of Google Translate, Jirau captioned the Instagram post, "One day I dreamed of it, I worked on it and today it is a dream come true. I can finally tell you my big secret… I am the first Victoria's Secret model with Down syndrome! Thanks to all of you for always supporting me in my projects. Thanks to @victoriassecret for seeing me as a #NoLimits model and making me part of the Love Cloud Collection inclusion campaign. This is just the beginning, now it's formed! Inside and out there are no limits ... !"

What else?

Victoria's Secret announced in June that it would be leaving behind the traditional supermodel-style "Angels" and rebranding itself to be more inclusive.

At the time, the company said, "When the world was changing, we were too slow to respond. We needed to stop being about what men want and to be about what women want.”

Its campaign at the time also included outspoken soccer star and activist Megan Rapinoe, Chinese-American freestyle skier and Olympian Eileen Gu, and more.

Rapinoe at the time complained that the brand was "patriarchal, sexist, viewing not just what it meant to be sexy but what the clothes were trying to accomplish through a male lens and through what men desired."

"And it was very much marketed toward younger women,” she added, calling the company's former message "really harmful."

Rapinoe continued, "As a gay woman, I think a lot about what we think is sexy, and we are afforded the ability to do that, because I don’t have to wear the traditional sexy thing to be sexy and I don’t think the traditional thing is sexy when it comes to my partner or people I’ve dated. I think functionality is probably the sexiest thing we could possibly achieve in life. Sometimes just cool is sexy, too.”

Virtue-signaling soccer star Megan Rapinoe — who tells others 'we have to be better' — stereotypes Asians in resurfaced tweet



Ultra-woke soccer star Megan Rapinoe — who once gave a speech saying, "This is my charge to everyone: We have to be better ..." and has virtue-signaled around the globe for progressive causes such as lack of diversity and the evils of white supremacy and former President Donald Trump — actually may be in trouble with cancel culture.

Yup, right after she was chosen as one of seven "women famous for their achievements" who will replace Victoria's Secret supermodel angels, Rapinoe now has a problematic old tweet to deal with.

And in it she stereotypes Asians.

What are the details?

Her tweet from 2011 tells another individual that "u look asian with those closed eyes!"

Image source: Twitter

According to the Sports Room, the account Rapinoe tagged in the tweet — @tasha_kai00, which no longer exists — belonged to former professional soccer player Natasha Kai, who the outlet said is of Hawaiian, Chinese, Filipino, and Caucasian heritage.

Now what?

As of late Thursday afternoon, Rapinoe does not appear to have explained the nature of the tweet to her 923,000-plus Twitter followers. And the tweet itself still was active as of 4:30 p.m.

Given that folks far and wide have been canceled into oblivion for uttering such stereotypical statements, one might guess that Rapinoe could have some cleaning up and 'fessing up to do if she is to survive this. But then again, Rapinoe — who came into prominence after kneeling for the national anthem a la Colin Kaepernick — is a powerful woman with untold numbers of fans and admirers, and she might simply choose to ignore the whole thing.

How are folks reacting?

The tweet is newly resurfaced, so reaction is still pretty fresh, but the tweet is picking up steam — and so are the comments about it. Here's a sampling:

  • "@VictoriasSecret this is your model?" one user asked. "What do you think of this take?"
  • "She is racist," another commenter wrote.
  • "I'm Asian (Chinese to be exact as it clearly makes a difference to people like you)," another user said. "I'd like an explanation for your comment, Ms. Rapinoe. Or, you think we can be blinded with dental floss, too?"
  • "Isn't this the same one who cried about gender equality???" another commenter inquired.
  • "Lmao she's not a right winger. Nothing will happen," another user declared.
  • "the queen of social justice is about to be cancelled herself," another commenter said. "I have no words."

Oh, and here's that speech noted previously in which Rapinoe tells her listeners, "We have to be better":

Soccer player Megan Rapinoe urges crowd at NYC celebration to 'do better'youtu.be

Victoria's Secret ditches supermodel angels, replaces them with 'women famous for their achievements' including Megan Rapinoe



Victoria's Secret has sent its angels packing in a monumental rebranding that replaces the supermodels with a group of seven "women famous for their achievements," including U.S. soccer star and activist Megan Rapinoe.

What are the details?

The New York Times reported that Victoria's Secret will now be represented by a group called the VS Collective, comprised of "women famous for their achievements and not their proportions."

In addition to Rapinoe, the collective includes 17-year-old Chinese American freestyle skier Eileen Gu, size 14 model "and inclusivity advocate" Paloma Elsessor, Indian actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Brazilian trans model Valentino Sampaio, model and South Sudanese refugee Adut Akech, and Amanda de Cadenet, "the photographer and founder of #Girlgaze, the digital platform for female photographers."

Martin Waters, former head of Victoria's Secret's international business and its new CEO as of February, explained to The Times of the company's rebranding, "When the world was changing, we were too slow to respond. We needed to stop being about what men want and to be about what women want."

When the news hit Twitter, people overwhelmingly predicted doom for Victoria's Secret over their decision. "How To Destroy Your Brand 101," one person wrote, with a laughing emoji. Another tweeted, "Hoooboy. RIP @VictoriasSecret." Someone else replied, "reading the tweets seems like vast vast vast majority is hating this decision lol We can add Victoria secret bankruptcy list for 2022."

Although Victoria's Secret had expressed that their aim was to appeal to women, not all women are on board with the new plan.

One woman tweeted, "Men like to look at the Angels. Women hope to look like the angels in the overpriced stuff you sell. Megan Rapinoe has no place in this scenario, ever, at all. Just incredible stuff here."

Another added, "Since they stopped the fashion show they've really just gone downhill on a woke sled and it kind of disheartening. I miss wanting to emulate the angels, the epitome of beauty, not see models that look just like me sitting awkwardly trying to hide their rolls."

But others praised the move, with one person sharing, "I was in a [Victoria's Secret] PINK store the other day and noticed mannequins of different sizes and it was such a comforting change."

Some folks resorted to humor about how the now-fallen "angels" might fare. One person quipped, "At least the models can finally eat a hamburger or something."