From Salt Lake Tribune (Utah)
by Scott Pierce
One of the contestants on the new season of “Project Runway” is a Salt Lake City resident who has, to her surprise, found herself representing her religion on the reality/competition show.
To a lot of people’s surprise, the religion she’s representing is Islam.
“When I first started on ‘Project Runway,’” said Ayana Ife, “my main goal was, obviously, I want to win. And I really, really, really need this exposure. I want to be an acclaimed designer for the modest market. I really want to be branded that way. Not just for Muslim women — for women who love modest fashion.”
One of the contestants on the new season of “Project Runway” is a Salt Lake City resident who has, to her surprise, found herself representing her religion on the reality/competition show.
To a lot of people’s surprise, the religion she’s representing is Islam.
“When I first started on ‘Project Runway,’” said Ayana Ife, “my main goal was, obviously, I want to win. And I really, really, really need this exposure. I want to be an acclaimed designer for the modest market. I really want to be branded that way. Not just for Muslim women — for women who love modest fashion.”
“But now that I’m actually on ‘Project Runway,’ the feedback I’ve been getting came out in a way that I didn’t really expect.”
On social media, Ife is hearing from “a lot of Muslim women saying, ’Wow, you’re representing us so well. We really feel inspired. We feel like you’re normalizing Muslims — especially in our current political climate.‘”
And, perhaps, widening expectations of who lives in Salt Lake City. Chances are that most viewers don’t expect to see a Muslim from Utah.
