The eldest child of Madonna, Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon, is all grown up. Now a star in her own right, Leon has stepped into the spotlight through huge modelling jobs working with the likes of Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney. She has also graced the cover of Vogue and amassed an impressive 209k followers on Instagram. Now considered by many to be a fashion icon, Leon has the power to influence millions of young women through the trends she sets and follows. And one of her most talked-about fashion choices? Embracing body hair.

The model has appeared on red carpets, on social media, and in fashion shows bearing unshaved arms, underarms, and legs, a huge FU to the patriarchal standard demanding that women be clean-shaven in order to be considered beautiful. Keep reading to learn more about Leon’s decision to reject this traditional female beauty standard, even if Twitter does want her to shave, and how her career is thriving in spite of it.

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Wearing Armpit Hair At The Met

One of the things to know about Lourdes Leon is, like her mother, she's a fashion icon. Recently at the 2021 Met Gala, she made waves for rejecting a long-standing beauty standard for women: having no body hair.

As she strutted down the red carpet in her hot pink dress that displayed her killer abs, Leon also displayed something else that she’s proud of: armpit hair. The model posed with her arms stretched so she could proudly show her armpit hair to the world.

Leon’s Met Gala look was also complemented by her super-long black hair flowing down her back and a dramatic smoky eye.

Her Role In Standing Up For Women's Rights

Truthfully, a woman having armpit hair shouldn’t make the news. But because so many women are pressured into removing their body hair, whether they want to or not, Leon’s choice to embrace her body hair is not only a fashion statement but also a bold step in the direction of women shattering the unrealistic and unfair expectations that are placed on them.

A History Of Embracing Body Hair

The 2021 Met Gala wasn’t the only time that Leon embraced her body hair. The star often posts photos on social media where fans can see her decision not to shave. And it seems that a lot of fans are behind the decision, with her posts receiving hundreds of thousands of likes. In one such photo, Leon posed for a selfie with her mom, Madonna, proudly showing off her armpit hair.

Leon, whom Madonna shares with fitness trainer and actor Carlos Leon, also showed off her unshaved armpits back in November 2018, when she walked the red carpet at the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Gala.

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Inspired By Her Mom

While Madonna isn’t known for flaunting body hair, the global superstar does have a reputation for setting fashion trends and not caring what anyone thinks of her. And back in 2010, she did open up about her choice to not shave her armpits when she was in high school.

“Going to high school, I saw how popular girls had to behave to get the boys. I knew I couldn’t fit into that,” she revealed in an interview with Harper’s Bazaar (via UK Style). “So I decided to do the opposite. I refused to wear makeup, to have a hairstyle. I refused to shave. I had hairy armpits.”

Her Modelling Career

Though society demands that women be hairless, choosing to embrace her body hair hasn’t stopped Leon from booking modelling jobs. In fact, she’s the new face of Marc Jacobs. Since her modelling debut back in 2016, the 24-year-old has also worked with Stella McCartney and now appears on billboards across the United States. Additionally, she has already strutted down the runway for Versace and is currently starring in a new campaign for Swarovski.

It just goes to show that women don’t have to bow down to unrealistic beauty standards to find success. As Vanity Fair puts it, Lourdes Leon is ready to express herself with or without the permission of society.

Leon has also had success from a design point of view, partnering with her mom to launch a clothing line called Material Girl in 2010. At just 14 years old, Leon was the face of the line, which is still sold today.

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Dreams of Being a Role Model

Confident and ready to take a stand against a toxic culture that manipulates women into being ashamed of their natural selves, Leon has all the makings of a role model with the power to influence a generation. And that’s a good thing, since she revealed to Vanity Fair that she’d like to be something of a role model when it comes to motivating others.

She revealed that her goals include “motivating a person or two” to realize their dreams. “I would just like to be of use.”

Mission accomplished!

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