Samira Nasr

In 2021, Montreal born, Samira Nasr becomes Harper Bazaar’s first black editor-in-chief. She made history in the magazine’s 154 year history. She took over the helm in the middle of a pandemic but after months of setbacks, the March issue debuted. She totally owned it, featuring Megan Thee Stallion on its cover.

Samira’s vision for the magazine is all about bringing some of this era’s most provocative female voices so, “that they would know that their text would be safe and that the person editing them would understand their stories.” She was quick to add, “I’m not saying that all White editors don’t have the capacity. I’m just saying there’s something about seeing your likeness, or knowing that person will really see you, that kind of opens the gate and allows for a little more trust.”

Yes, there is definitely something fortifying about seeing someone who looks like you which makes a big difference. And it would be an inspiration for many people of color to see more representation.

Samira, the single mother of an adopted son, Lex, who in her 20s, followed her brother to New York where she studied journalism at New York University after finishing an undergraduate degree in philosophy, accepted the challenge to reimage the magazine. “As the proud daughter of a Lebanese father and Trinidadian mother, my worldview is expansive and is anchored in the belief that representation matters,” Nasr said. “My lens by nature is colorful, and so it is important to me to begin a new chapter in Bazaar’s history by shining a light on all individuals who I believe are the inspiring voices of our time.”

To read more about this remarkable change-maker, check out the video below. Kudos to her for being the face and force behind a long overdue change in the fashion magazine world.

“Great style is about more than the way we wear our clothes. It is also how we see and occupy space in the world around us” – Samira Nasr

Sources: Global News; CNN; Overdressed for Life; Keep it Chic; Washington Post