LIFE

If you’ve ever been bullied for the way you look, Khoudia Diop knows how you feel.

Khoudia is a 19-year-old girl from Senegal, who faced bullying just because of the color of her skin. When she was 15, she moved to France, where people called her “darkie” and “daughter of the night." It made her start to think that she wasn’t beautiful. (Which is crazy—I mean, look at her!)

Instead of letting the haters get her down, she gave herself her own nickname: Melanin Goddess. Melanin is "various black, dark brown, reddish-brown or yellow pigments of animal or plant structures (as skin or hair)." Basically, Khoudia's skin contains a lot of melanin—it's what makes it so beautifully dark.

She started modeling at 17-years-old, wanting to show other girls to always feel beautiful. Now, Khoudia is an inspiration to over 200,000 followers on Instagram. She also works with The Colored Girl, Inc., whose goal to empower women by showing all the beautiful shades of color we have in our world.

Khoudia uses her modeling to inspire other girls who might be going through the same kind of bullying she went through, and to remind them how beautiful they really are. She captioned one of her pictures, “If you're lucky enough to be different, don't ever change.” 

Khoudia is a reminder that each and every one of us are perfect regardless of what haters might say. This weekend, show yourself some love by using your unique qualities to your advantage—you never know where accepting yourself will take you.

Are you inspired by Khoudia? What do you think of her story? Tell us about it in the comments!

Photo credit: Khoudia Diop

by Amy Garcia | 10/29/2016