Meet Nyakim Gatwech, the South Sudanese model teaching people not to be afraid of the dark. With her intensely pigmented skin and fierce determination, she’s breaking down the barriers of conventional beauty and encouraging others to do precisely the same.
The 24-year-old burgeoning fashion icon, who now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has no shame about her melanin and makes sure the world is aware. “My chocolate is elegant. So is what I represent… A nation of warriors,” she captioned one of her many Instagram photos, which routinely exceed 10 thousand likes each. In another, she details an experience in which an Uber driver suggested she try ‘bleaching’ her skin – her only response was laughter. “You won’t believe the questions and looks I get for having this skin.”
24-year-old Nyakim Gatwech is making waves in the fashion industry with her sumptuously dark skin
In 2016, an Uber driver suggested she bleach her skin, implying that her deep complexion was nothing to love
She responded with laughter and has fully embraced her striking appearance ever since
“My chocolate is elegant. So is what I represent… A nation of warriors,” she captioned an Instagram photo
Now living in Minneapolis, Nyakim is a voice of encouragement for the Black community
“You are beyond beautiful, and the love I have for you is unconditional because you are me,” she wrote
“Let’s show the world how beautiful and intelligent we are apart from being dark-skinned.”
Though she still receives discouraging messages now and then, she refuses to give up her radiant self-love
She has even been dubbed the “Queen of the Dark,” a title she happily accepts
“My skin absorbs the sun’s rays, and my hair defies gravity. Now you can’t tell me I’m not magical!”
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