A male amputee made history this week at one of the fashion industry’s biggest events.
Jack Eyers, an amputee from the United Kingdom, walked down the runway at New York Fashion Week on Sunday as part of the FTL Moda show featuring designs by Antonio Urzi. The 25-year-old’s appearance made him the first male amputee to walk in the prestigious showcase.
“To be the first male amputee model on a New York Fashion Week runway feels amazing — it feels like such a big deal,” Eyers told Caters News in a press release, after having been chosen for the show, which featured models with disabilities from around the world.
Eyers, who was born with proximal femoral focal deficiency, a condition which affected the growth of his right leg, chose to have that leg amputated at age 16, due to discomfort, according to the release from Caters News. The 25-year-old now works as a spokesperson for Models of Diversity, an agency that aims to promote diversity on the runway. Urzi chose Eyers for the show after teaming up the group.
The model, who was nominated for Men’s Health magazine’s Man of the Year, told Caters News that his appearance at NYFW shines a spotlight on the lack of people with disabilities walking the runway.
“I just want to show that having a disability doesn’t need to hold you back,” he said. “I want people to see me, and to realize that there needs to be more disabled models walking the runway.”
