Edward Enninful, the Ghanaian-born stylist and former editor-in-chief of British Vogue, has warned that fashion is in danger of regressing on diversity as “anti-woke” rhetoric grows louder across the industry. Speaking during London Fashion Week on BBC Radio 4’s Radical with Amol Rajan podcast, Enninful said he feared a return to narrow ideals of beauty, where being “super-thin and European” once again becomes the dominant standard.

Enninful, who stepped down from his role at British Vogue in 2023 after six groundbreaking years, has been widely credited with driving greater inclusivity and representation across the fashion world. Under his leadership, the magazine championed models and designers from a wide range of racial, cultural, and body backgrounds. His latest project, a media platform called EE72 launched last week, continues his mission to promote inclusivity in fashion and beyond.

But in his latest comments, Enninful suggested that the cultural pendulum is swinging back toward exclusionary ideals. “I think we’re potentially going back to an industry that’s just sort of, ‘one type is the norm, being European is the norm, being super-thin is the norm,’” he said.

The remarks come at a time when fashion houses are under renewed scrutiny for their casting choices, runway aesthetics, and lack of progress in addressing systemic barriers for models of color, plus-size talent, and other underrepresented groups. Enninful’s warning underscores a broader debate about how political backlash against so-called “wokeness” is influencing industries once seen as leaders in cultural change.

During his tenure at Vogue, Enninful broke historic ground, including featuring the magazine’s first hijab-wearing model on the cover and significantly increasing representation of Black and non-European models. His departure was met with speculation about whether the industry would sustain such strides without his influence.

Enninful’s intervention highlights concerns that recent momentum for inclusivity could stall—or even reverse—if brands yield to pressures from conservative cultural trends or financial incentives to maintain traditional ideals of beauty. His call serves as both a critique and a rallying cry, urging fashion leaders not to abandon the progress made in the past decade.

As London Fashion Week continues, Enninful’s comments resonate across the industry, posing a difficult question: will fashion build on its diversity gains, or retreat to the narrow standards that once defined it?