Teddy Quinlivan Became the First Openly Transgender Model to Work with Chanel

For the first time in the history of the iconic fashion house, Chanel has hired an openly transgender model, Refinery29 reported. Teddy Quinlivan, who has worked with Louis Vuitton and Milk Makeup, shared the news of her Chanel Beauty campaign in an Instagram post on Monday, August 26.

Teddy addressed how meaningful the role was in a photo-and-video post. Touching on a life of fighting, which she says has included bullying and "blowback" for a decision to speak out against sexual assault in the fashion industry, she declared the campaign a moment of personal triumph.

"I am deeply humbled and proud to represent my community," Teddy wrote. "The world will kick you down, spit on you, and tell you you’re worthless. It’s your job to have the strength to stand up and push on, to keep fighting, Because if you give up then you will never experience the tears of triumph."

Her Instagram announcement arrived just days after Chanel Beauty shared the first images of Teddy's campaign on social media, including a video of how to recreate Teddy's sun-kissed look. Social media has responded favorably to Teddy's casting, writing to her on Instagram, "Your story brings tears to my eyes, and I know it all [too] well. You so deserve this," and "You're an example for everyone out there trying to stand up."

It may have taken some time, but in recent months, the fashion and beauty industry has started to become more inclusive of LGBTQ+ models. Back in June, Sephora unveiled an ad campaign that featured transgender, genderqueer, and non-binary models; earlier this month, Victoria's Secret reportedly hired its first transgender model, Valentina Sampaio. It's certainly great to see and celebrate the progress being made, but as Teen Vogue previously explored, representation and support has to extend beyond the runway and social media. There is still much work to be done.

Teen Vogue has reached out to Chanel for comment.

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Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue