Quotes from Alek Wek

The fact that designers like Lagerfeld, Gaultier, Galliano and Dior could believe in Alek made me believe in myself, too.

I am not really into buying a lot of expensive things.

There was no concept of fashion and catwalk shows where I came from.

I don't even know where to start in terms of people having such an issue about color, especially being dark. I just think on different levels it's ignorance; it's no belief, no confidence, it's insecurity, so you want to inflict it on somebody else.

Leaving southern Sudan as a child was terrifying. It was 1985, and my family and I were trying to escape to Khartoum, the capital in the North, to safety.

When I was 14, I came to school in London. I remember it was very cold, but also having to adjust and become fluent in English.

Don't focus on negative things; focus on the positive, and you will flourish.

My family is the most important thing to me.

You can't buy enlightenment, but you can hire a mirror so you can watch it happen.

You could fancy what you'd like, but as a woman, my mother always raised us to believe in ourselves. I am very grateful that my mother brought me up that way.

Going on safari in South Africa was hardcore but a lot of fun - though my friend Maura was absolutely freaking out about all the bugs in her hair and having to pee in the sand.

For me, it always goes back to what my mother taught me and my sisters. That all women are beautiful, and we should embrace each other.

When the militias came to Wau, they would blast out 'Thriller' as they moved down the dirt streets.

When you give, you receive.

I had jobs from the age of 14, when I arrived in London as a refugee. Aged 17, I'd get up at 4 A.M. to work as a cleaner before school. It wasn't pleasant.

My commitment to refugees comes from a very personal place.

I believe we should utilise any power we have for important issues that are bigger and beyond us. Whether it's with refugees or working to educate kids. I don't think you need to have gone through a civil war to do something. I believe as human beings, we can look out for each other.

When I started, I'd hear other people saying, 'God, she's so bizarre-looking,' because I didn't look like the girl next door. But I was just normal. I was the girl next door. There were people in high fashion I could better relate to who were doing something more interesting and not talking this sort of rubbish.

There are people who can look out for other human beings; there are people who can speak up when something is not right and say, 'This is wrong, and something should be done.'

I know how it feels to go hungry.

It's an awful feeling, being hungry.

There are tons of black girls modeling, and each one is special.

Restaurants serve huge portions on even huger platters, and people are tempted to eat too much.

Not everyone is selfish in fashion. There are people who go to bed feeling good about themselves and then spread the love.