Actress Jamie Brewer is set to add another string to her considerable bow this month.
The American Horror Story star will walk in designer Carrie Hammer’s show, becoming the very first model with Down Syndrome to grace the NYFW runways.
Speaking to Today, Brewer said: “Young girls and even young women…[see me] and say ‘hey, if she can do it so can I.'”
“It’s a true inspiration being a role model for any young women to [encourage them] in being who they are and showing who they are.”
The actress, who has appeared in three seasons of Ryan Murphy’s hit horror TV series, was approached by designer Carrie Hammer as part of Hammer’s Role Models Not Runway Models campaign.
Hammer explained that after her first show, which included a current client who happens to use a wheelchair as one of her models, she received an email from Katie Driscoll, co-founder of Changing the Face of Beauty.
The organisation is a non-profit that encourages media to include people with disabilities. Driscoll’s own daughter Grace has Down Syndrome, and she wrote to Carrie saying: “Thank you for being the change that is long overdue. I could literally cry every time I read an article talking about your decision to include a model who just happens to have a disability! YOU are what this world needed!”
When the designer asked Katie to suggest a good role model, Brewer’s was the first name to spring to mind.
Driscoll said: “I explained to her how important it is for my daughter to have role models like [Brewer] to see that [anything] is possible.”
