Landing the front cover of Glamour magazine, Enya, a 24-year-old Dutch model with Down syndrome, is blazing a trail for more inclusivity in the fashion world.
Enya, a dancer from the Netherlands, was encouraged into modeling by her sister, Céline, who noticed deficient representation of people with disabilities in fashion and beauty. Enya loved the idea of making a difference.
Glamour met Enya when they collaborated on a beauty tutorial in January.
Not only was it Enya’s first cover, but it was the first major cover in the Netherlands to feature a person with Down syndrome.
“Thank you Glamour for this opportunity, believing in me, and contributing to a more diverse/inclusive world,” Enya said, signing off by sharing her hope that the cover will open doors for other brands to follow Glamour’s lead.
“We all can make the change, we all have to contribute,” she said.
Having launched @downsyndrome_queen in 2019, Enya and her sister turned social media into their most major lockdown hobby.
Enya also had to maintain her dance regime; while performances were canceled owing to the pandemic, Enya’s personal routine was not so forgiving.
“Of course, you have people who look at you and treat you differently, but on the other hand, it has also brought a lot of good things and people,” she told Vogue.
Now Enya uses social media to inspire others to think outside the box.
“I want to show them that I have a nice life, that I can do (almost) everything, and that I have a future with dreams,” she said.
Today, Enya and Céline’s Instagram page has almost 75,000 followers.
Major brands are getting behind the trailblazing model; Enya has already worked with Chanel, Dior, and Charlotte Tilbury through social media.
Her dream is to encourage yet more brands to strive for inclusivity, proving that beauty is diverse and cover space is for models that break the mold.
