Vulnerable Beauty: Finding My Voice

I am from Somalia. I was born in Mogadishu. My family and I left when I was 13 because of the civil war. We are Ismaili refugees in America.

When I came to America, I didn’t speak a word of English and entered school in the last few months of seventh grade. I was in an ESL class, I didn’t have any friends, I didn’t speak the language… it was a really tough beginning. But for some reason I learned English quite easily and after high school I got into a really good college. I’m just a really blessed person and so happy that somehow my life is working out.

I never wanted to be a model. My mom decided I was going to college and be a doctor and that was it – there was no question about it. I was really, really skinny in high school and a complete nerd; nobody really paid attention to me so modeling never actually crossed my mind until I went away to college and people started saying I looked a model. I thought they were joking because nobody had ever told me that I was beautiful. It took me two years to process the idea that I could be a model.

Mom, I’m Dropping Out Of College

At the end of my junior year, I went to Spelman College and became a little more comfortable in the way I dressed. I used to wear sweats and big sweaters, but at Spelman, it was like a fashion show everyday. I met a few friends who really pushed me to become more fashionable. A friend of mine told me about the show and I just auditioned.