Looks aren't everything. Believe me, I'm a model. | Cameron Russell

Hi, my name is Cameron Russell. And for the last little while, I've been a model, actually, for 10 years. And I feel like there's an uncomfortable tension in the room right now, because I should not have worn this dress. So luckily, I brought an outfit change. This is the first outfit change on the TED stage. So you guys are pretty lucky to witness it, I think. If some of the women were really horrified when I came out, you don't have to tell me now, but I'll find out later on Twitter. I'd also note that I'm quite privileged to be able to transform what you think of me in a very brief 10 seconds. Not everybody gets to do that. These heels are very uncomfortable, so good thing I wasn't going to wear them.

你好，我叫卡梅伦·拉塞尔。在过去的一段时间里，其实是十年，我一直是一名模特。我感觉现在房间里有种不舒服的紧张气氛，因为我不该穿这条裙子。幸运的是，我带了另一套衣服，这是TED讲台上的第一次换装，所以你们很幸运能看到这一幕。我想，如果有些女性对我刚出来时的样子感到震惊，你们现在不必告诉我，但我稍后会在推特上发现。我还要指出，我很幸运能够在短短的十秒钟内改变你们对我的印象。并不是每个人都有这个机会。这双高跟鞋非常不舒服，所以幸好我决定不穿它们。

The worst part is putting a sweater over my head, because that's when you all laugh at me, so don't do anything while it's over my head. All right. So why did I do that? That was awkward. Well, hopefully not as awkward as that picture. Image is powerful, but also image is superficial. I just totally transformed what you thought of me in six seconds. In this picture, I had actually never had a boyfriend in real life. I was totally uncomfortable in the photographer was telling me to arch my back and put my hand in that guy's hair. And of course, barring surgery or the fake tan that I got two days ago for work, there's very little that we can do to transform how we look. And how we look, though it is superficial and immutable, has a huge impact on our lives.

最糟糕的是穿毛衣的时候把头埋进去，因为那时候你们都会笑我，所以在我把头埋进去的时候什么都别做。好吧。所以我为什么那样做？那很尴尬。当然，希望不会像那张照片一样尴尬。形象是很有力量的，但同时它也是表面的。刚才六秒钟里，我彻底改变了你们对我的看法。在这张照片里，我实际上从未在现实生活中有过男朋友。我在拍照时非常不自在，因为摄影师让我挺直背，把手放在那个男孩的头发上。当然，除了通过手术或两天前为了工作而做的假晒黑，我们很难改变我们的外貌。而我们的外貌，尽管是表面且难以改变的，却对我们的生活有巨大的影响。

So today, for me, being fearless means being honest. And I am on this stage because I am a model. I am on this stage because I am a pretty white woman. In my industry, we call that a sexy girl. And I'm going to answer the questions that people always ask me, but with an honest twist. So the first question is how do you become a model? And I always just say, oh, I was scouted, but that means nothing. The real way that I became a model is I want a genetic lottery, and I am the recipient of a legacy.

今天，对我来说，无所畏惧意味着坦诚。而我站在这个舞台上，是因为我是一个模特，是因为我是一个漂亮的白人女性。在我们的行业里，人们称这样的女孩为“性感女孩”。现在我会诚实地回答人们总是问我的问题。第一个问题是：你是怎么成为模特的？我常常会说，我是被星探发现的，但这并没有多大意义。真正让我成为模特的原因是我中了基因彩票，同时我还是家族遗产的受益者。

And maybe you're wondering what is a legacy? Well, for the past few centuries, we have defined beauty not just as health and youth and symmetry that were biologically programmed to admire, but also as tall, slender figures and femininity and white skin. And this is a legacy that was built for me, and it's a legacy that I've been cashing out on. And I know there are people in the audience who are skeptical at this point. And maybe there are some fashionistas who are like, wait, Naomi, Tyra, Joan Smalls, Lou Wen.

也许你在想什么是遗产？ 啊，在过去几个世纪里，我们定义美不仅仅是健康、年轻和对称这些我们生物上被编程去欣赏的特征，还有高挑、苗条的体型、女性化和白皮肤。这是一种为我构建的遗产，并且我一直在利用这个遗产。我知道在场有些人对此持怀疑态度，也许还有一些时尚达人会说，等等，奈奥米、泰拉、琼·斯莫尔斯、刘雯这些人呢？

And first, I commend you on your model knowledge. Very impressive. But unfortunately, I have to inform you that in 2007, a very inspired NYU PhD student counted all the models on the runway, every single one of them was hired. And of the 677 models that were hired, only 27 were less than 4% were non-white. The next question people always ask me is, can I be a model when I grow up? And the first answer is, I don't know if they don't put me in charge of that. But the second answer and what I really want to say to these little girls is, why?

首先，我要称赞你对模特行业的了解，很了不起。但是，很遗憾，我必须告诉你，在2007年，一名来自纽约大学的博士生统计了所有走秀的模特，每一个被雇佣的模特。他统计了677名被雇佣的模特，其中只有27名，少于4%是不属于白人的。接下来人们总是问我的问题是，我长大后能成为模特吗？第一个回答是，我不知道，因为我不负责这个。第二个回答，也是我真正想对这些小女孩们说的，为什么要做模特呢？

You know, you can be anything. You could be the president of the United States or the inventor of the next internet or a ninja cardiothoracic surgeon poet, which would be awesome because it would be the first one. If after this amazing list, they still are like, no, no, Cameron, I want to be a model. Well, then I say, be my boss because I'm not in charge of anything. And you could be the editor-in-chief of American Vogue, the CEO of H&M or the next Stephen Meisel. Saying that you want to be a model when you grow up is akin to saying that you want to win the power ball when you grow up.

你知道吗，你可以成为任何人。你可以当美国总统，或者发明下一个互联网的伟人，甚至成为一个忍者胸心外科医生兼诗人，这会很酷，因为你会是第一个这样的。如果在列出这些令人惊叹的职业之后，他们还是说“不错，Cameron，我就是想当模特”，那么我会说，那你得当我的老板，因为我什么都不负责。你可以成为《美国时尚》杂志的主编、H&M的CEO或者下一个Stephen Meisel。说你长大后想当模特，就像说你长大后想中强力球一样。

It's, you know, out of your control and it's awesome and it's not a career path. I will demonstrate for you now 10 years of accumulated model knowledge because unlike cardiothoracic surgeons, it can just be distilled right into right now. So if the photographer is right there and the light is right there, like a nice H&M eye, and the client says, Cameron, we want a walking shot. Well, then this light goes first, nice and long. This arm goes back. This arm goes forward. The head is at three quarters. And you just go back and forth. Just do that. Look back at your imaginary friends. 300, 400, 500 times. It will look something like this. Hopefully less awkward than that one in the middle.

这件事嘛，你知道的，不在你的掌控之中，但这也很棒，而且这不是一条职业道路。现在我会为你展示十年来积累的模特知识，因为与心胸外科医生不同，这些知识可以直接凝练到此刻。所以，如果摄影师在那边，光线在那边，比如一个H&M眼影的位置，客户说，Cameron，我们要一个走路的镜头。那么这边的腿先走，步子要长一点。这只手往后摆。那只手往前摆。头保持三分之三的角度。然后就来回走。就这样。回头看你那些想象中的朋友。做个三百、四百、五百次。大概就是这样了。希望看起来比中间那个不那么尴尬。

That was, I don't know what happened there. Unfortunately, after you've gone to school and you have a resume and you've done a few jobs, you can't say anything anymore. So if you say you want to be the president of the United States, but your resume reads underwear model 10 years, people give you a funny look. The next question people always ask me is do they retouch all the photos? And yeah, they pretty much retouch all the photos, but that is only a small component of what's happening. This picture is a very first picture that I ever took, and it's also the very first time that I had worn a bikini. And I didn't even have my period yet. I know we're getting personal, but I was a young girl. This is what I looked like with my grandma just a few months earlier. Here's me on the same day as this shoot my friend got to come with me. Here's me at a slumber party a few days before I shot French Vogue. Here's me on the soccer team and in V Magazine. And here's me today. And I hope what you're seeing is that these pictures are not pictures of me. They are constructions. And they are constructions by professionals, by hair stylists and makeup artists and photographers and stylists and all of their assistants and pre-production and post-production. And they build this. That's not me.

当时，我也不知道发生了什么。不幸的是，当你上过学，有了一份简历并做过几份工作后，你就再也不能随便说什么了。比如说，如果你声称想成为美国总统，但你的简历上写的是当了十年的内衣模特，人们就会用一种奇怪的眼光看你。别人总是会问我的下一个问题是，所有的照片都有修过吗？答案是，基本上所有的照片都会修，但这只是整个过程的一小部分。这张照片是我拍的第一张照片，也是我第一次穿比基尼的时候。那时我甚至还没来月经。我知道我们在聊一些私人的事情，但那时我还是个小女孩。这是几个月前我和我奶奶在一起时的样子。这是同一天我在拍摄现场，我的朋友也一起去了。这是拍《法版Vogue》几天前我在一个过夜聚会上。这是我在踢足球队和登上《V Magazine》时的样子。这是我现在的样子。我希望你能看到，这些照片并不是我真实的样子，它们都是构建出来的。这些构建是由专业人士完成的，包括发型师、化妆师、摄影师、造型师以及他们所有的助理、前期和后期制作团队。他们构建出了这个形象，但那不是我。

Okay, so the next question people always ask me is do you get free stuff? I do have too many aid-in shields, which I never get to wear, except for earlier. But the free stuff that I get is the free stuff that I get in real life and that's what we don't like to talk about. I grew up in Cambridge and one time I went into a store and I forgot my money and they gave me the dress for free. When I was a teenager I was driving with my friend who was an awful driver and she ran a red and of course we got pulled over. And all it took was a sorry officer and we were on our way. And I got these free things because of how I look, not who I am. And there are people paying a cost for how they look and not who they are. I live in New York and last year of the 140,000 teenagers that were stop and frisked, 86% of them were black and Latino and most of them were young men. And there are only 177,000 young black and Latino men in New York. So for them it's not a question of will I get stopped, but how many times will I get stopped, when will I get stopped?

好的，所以接下来人们总是问我的问题是：你会得到免费的东西吗？我确实有很多援助盾牌，但我几乎没机会穿，除了之前穿过一次。但是我得到的免费的东西是我在现实生活中得到的那些，这些我们不喜欢谈论。我在剑桥长大，有一次我进了一家商店，忘记带钱了，他们就把连衣裙免费给了我。青少年时期，我和一个驾驶技术很差的朋友开车，她闯了红灯，我们当然被拦下了。只说了句“对不起，警官”，我们就被放行了。我因外貌而得到这些免费东西，而不是因为我是谁。同时，也有些人因为外表而付出代价，而不是因为他们是谁。我住在纽约，去年在被搜身检查的14万青少年中，86%是黑人和拉丁裔，而且大多数是年轻男性。在纽约，只有17.7万年轻的黑人和拉丁裔男性。所以，对他们来说问题不是“我会不会被拦下”，而是多少次、何时会被拦下。

When I was researching this talk I found out that of the 13 year old girls in the United States, 53% don't like their bodies. And that number goes to 78% by the time that they're 17. So the last question people ask me is what is it like to be a model? And I think the answer that they're looking for is if you are a little bit skinnier and you have shinier hair you will be so happy and fabulous. And when we're backstage we give an answer that maybe makes it seem like that. We say it's really amazing to travel and it's amazing to get to work with creative, inspired, passionate people. And those things are true but they're only one half of the story because the thing that we never say on camera, that I have never said on camera, is I am insecure. And I'm insecure because I have to think about what I look like every day. And if you ever are wondering, you know, if I have thinner thighs and shinier hair, will I be happier? You just need to meet a group of models because they have the thinnest thighs and the shinier hair and the coolest clothes and they're the most physically insecure women probably on the planet.

当我在为这场演讲做研究时，我发现美国13岁的女孩中有53%不喜欢自己的身体。而到了17岁，这个数字上升到78%。所以最后人们问我的问题是，当模特是什么感觉？我想他们期待的答案是，如果你稍微瘦一点，头发更亮，你会非常开心而且光彩照人。我们在后台的回答可能也让人觉得是这样的。我们说，出差旅行非常棒，能和有创意、有灵感、充满激情的人一起工作也非常棒。这些事情确实都是真的，但这只是事情的一方面，因为有一件事情我们从来不在镜头前说，我也从来没在镜头前说过，那就是我有不安全感。我感到不安全是因为我每天都得考虑自己的外表。如果你曾经想知道，如果我大腿更瘦、头发更亮，是不是会更开心？你只需要认识一群模特，因为她们有最瘦的大腿、最亮的头发和最酷的衣服，但她们可能也是这个星球上对自己外表最没有安全感的女性。

So when I was writing this talk I found it very difficult to strike an honest balance because on the one hand I felt very uncomfortable to come out here and say, look, I've received all these benefits from a deck stacked in my favor. And it also felt really uncomfortable to follow that up with and it doesn't always make me happy. Mostly it was difficult to unpack a legacy of gender and racial oppression when I'm one of the biggest beneficiaries. But I'm also happy and honored to be up here and I think that it's great I got to come, you know, before 10 or 20 or 30 years had passed and I'd had more agency in my career because maybe then I wouldn't tell the story of how I got my first job or maybe I wouldn't tell the story of how I paid for college which seems so important right now. If there's a takeaway to this talk I hope it's that we all feel more comfortable acknowledging the power of image in our perceived successes and our perceived failures. Okay, thank you.

在准备这个演讲时，我发现很难找到一个真实的平衡。一方面，我觉得很不舒服在这里说，我从有利于我的环境中获得了这些好处。另一方面，接着再说，尽管有这些好处，我也并不总是感到快乐，这也让我觉得很不舒服。特别是作为性别和种族压迫的最大受益者之一，分析这些历史遗留的问题对我来说非常困难。但我也很高兴和荣幸能够站在这里，我认为在我事业中获得更多自主权之前就能和大家分享这些经历是很棒的，因为也许在那之后我就不会讲述我找到第一份工作或是支付大学学费的故事，而这些故事现在看起来非常重要。如果这个演讲有一个收获的话，我希望那是我们都能更坦然地承认形象在我们成功或失败中的作用。谢谢大家。