Filipina model pushes back on her critics who say she isn't Filipino enough

Model Kelsey Merritt is proud to call herself a Filipina.

ASAM NEWS & Views From the Edge

VICTORIA SECRET model Kelsey Merritt is proud to be a Filipina and she's a little tired of people not accepting her identity.

"White passing" is a term that many multiracial people find insulting. The insinuation is that because you look White, you’re not really a person of color.

Merritt, who is of mixed racial heritage, finds herself pushing back against that label.

Just two months ago, she celebrated being the first Filipino to work in the Victoria Secret Fashion Show.

Late this past week, her dream came true and she walked the catwalk for the famous lingerie manufacturer.

An overwhelming majority of comments on social media from Filipinos applauded that achievement.

One that caused a stir raised the issue of Merritt’s white attributes. and if she is really a Filipino.

Striking back in Tagalog on Twitter, Merritt wrote, “‘I was born in the Philippines and I grew up in Pampanga. I finished my school in Manila before I moved to the U.S. last year. My blood is more Filipino than the ‘pure’ who have never set foot in the Philippines,” reported the Daily Mail.

Kelsey’s mom is Filipino and her father is white: a combination not uncommon in the Philippines. because of its long history of colonization under the Spanish followed by its occupation by the United States from 1898 to 1946. Filipinos of this mixed racial heritage are called mestizas or mestizos.

“People will always have their opinion of you despite of who you are,” she said to Teen Vogue. “I would love to tell them that I am just me.”

The Victoria Secrets Fashion Show staged in New York City on Nov. 8, is scheduled to air December 2 on ABC.

Although Merritt is the first Filipina to strut down the runway in the annual fashion show, she is not the first Asian model used by Victoria Secrets. Previous models from China and Japan have been used to display the lingerie and bathing suits.

In 2017 when the show was held in Shanghai eight Chinese models joined the cast.

This year, Estele Chen will also walk down the runway with her.

The show has launched the fashion careers of several Victoria Secret models  incuding Adriana Luna, Allessandra Ambrosio, Beella Hadid, Miranda Kerr, Giselle Bundchen, Heidi Klum and Kendall Jenner among others. 

Each spot on this annual catwalk is highly coveted. It’s the most-watched fashion event of the year, according to Harper’s Bazaar. About 800 million viewers tune in to watch the show each year, which costs about $12 million to put on. 
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