Shortly after James Charles was named CoverGirl’s first male spokesmodel, the mega makeup brand is making another move towards inclusivity by naming Nura Afia, a Muslim beauty blogger, the company’s new brand ambassador. Based on her epic makeup tutorials, she’s more than deserving of the prestigious title.
“It feels so surreal,” Afia revealed in a recent interview. “I never thought I would see Muslim women represented on such a large scale.” She also confessed to feeling insecure about wearing a hijab, especially while she was growing up, but it now makes a proud appearance in nearly every one of her makeup tutorial videos.
“I started watching YouTube videos when I was at home breast-feeding after I had just had my daughter, Laila, to pass the time,” she explained to Refinery29 during a 2015 interview. “There [weren’t many] Muslim hijabi YouTubers [back then]. I wanted to make videos because I felt like there might be other girls like me out there. I wanted to show people that I can still be married and a mom and do whatever the hell I want — [my scarf] isn’t going to stop me.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0HxY6sx6JU
“[Personally], it’s always been a struggle [wearing my scarf], and I’ve always felt like I had to prove something to the world,” she continued. “Growing up, I [always felt] like everyone would look down on me just because I wear a hijab. They think I’m just going to get married and have kids and that I can’t be good at something.”
Obviously the critics were way wrong. Afia kicked off her ambassadorship Tuesday at the CoverGirl event in New York City’s Times Square, where she took photos with fans and celebrated a massive billboard with her face on it.
“[I’m not going to take my scarf off because] I started my whole YouTube [career] with it on and I want to be strong for other younger girls [like me],” she told Refinery29. “And for my daughter’s sake; I don’t want to be flip-flopping in front of her. Sometimes I’ll wear a beanie out and Laila will [ask], ‘Where’s your scarf, Mama?'”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBbfVDzXi6Y
YAS GIRL! Keep doing you and more success will come. Check out her best Instagram photos below and make sure to follow her to up your beauty game.
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