Former First Lady Melania Trump has always been very crafty about the way she fights back against a media and political landscape that continuously punishes her for the sin of being married to a man who was never supposed to be president. She often maintains a dignified silence, but all that's about to end with the publishing next month of her autobiography, "Melania."
In the lead-up to publication, Melania has been releasing short videos teasing what readers can expect. The latest video has her questioning the treatment she received from the press for work she did when she was a model.
'Why do I stand proudly behind my nude modeling work?,' she says in the 45 second video posted to her social media accounts on Wednesday morning.
'The more pressing question is, why has the media chosen to scrutinize my celebration of the human forum in a fashion photo shoot? Are we no longer able to appreciate the beauty of the human body?'
Here's Melania in her own words:
There were signs early on that Melania Trump would be treated differently from other first ladies. High fashion designers, usually eager for the exposure of dressing a high-profile figure, refused to work with her. There would be no Vogue covers for her. It has to be asked -- seriously?! Jill Biden, who alternates between dressing like a lampshade with dressing like Aunt Edna's drapery, gets a fawning fashion shoot for Vogue, while five-foot-ten former model Melania gets blacklisted? What a world.
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Melania's no dummy. She knew that most of her friends in the fashion world would turn on her. She also knew that she'd never get fair treatment in the media, so she was strategic in how she fought back and how she got her message across. She often used fashion to accomplish this.
One of Melania's craftiest moments was at the October 2016 presidential debate between Trump and Hillary Clinton, herself a former first lady. Albeit of the frumpy kind. You'll recall that Trump was getting roasted in the press for a rather vulgar thing he had said in an unearthed interview done years before with "Access Hollywood." Melania was clearly not cowed by any of the furor, and proved it by striding into the debate venue wearing a fuchsia Gucci blouse featuring a hard-to-miss pussy-cat bow.
She said nothing, but spoke volumes. That's often how it's been with Melania Trump. Until now.
With the release of her new autobiography, we'll hopefully get her take on not just the history she witnessed up close as first lady, but also her thoughts on the treatment she received at the hands of the media.
Speaking of the media, it will be very telling how they treat Melania Trump as opposed to, say, Hillary Clinton, who also has a new book out. Hillary will, of course, be making the rounds to promote her book; we'll likely be treated to countless cloying interviews with her on every news show, talk show, late-night show, newspaper, etc. Will those same invitations go out to Melania Trump? And does Melania even care if they don't?
"Melania" will hit bookshelves on October 8, 2024.
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