As if Serena Williams had not had enough controversy this year! The new mom opened up a few months back about struggling through post pardom depression and being a new mom. However, she has overcome it all. Her latest victory was gracing the cover of GQ Magazine as ‘Woman’ Of The Year.
Why would this cause controversy? Well it was the way the caption was written. In the history of GQ announcing the men and woman of the year, the caption has always been emphasized around the entire quote, “Woman Of The Year”. Since that did not take place for Serena’s cover, critics were quick to say it was an insult to her strong body, relating to her past when she eas teased and compared to the physique of a man.
However, GQ says it has nothing to do with their tradition. The caption lays on the unique design of Virgil Abloh, who is the Off-White designer behind her coolest on-court looks in 2018. Serena’s camp replied to the critics saying the quotations were because it was handwritten by Virgil Abloh of Off-White, who has styled everything in quotation marks as of late (see Serena’s US Open apparel that he designed)
— Mick Rouse (@mickrouse) November 12, 2018
How does Serena feel about this? According to Yahoo, Abloh’s work with Williams, interestingly enough, made her feel the opposite of what social media users were suggesting the magazine implied.
“When I first tried on the dress, I felt very strong and feminine at the same time,” Williams told Vogue in August. “It has all the really strong elements, from the leather to that really cool stretchy material. I felt so feminine in the tutu, which is probably my favorite part of it. It really embodies what I always say: that you can be strong and beautiful at the same time.”
