When the epic, all-black Vogue Italia hit the shelves this summer, fashion-philes everywhere wondered if the magazine's focus on black models would change the fashion industry. Would the people in charge of the white-washed runways and magazines see the light and try to be more diverse in their casting practices. During New York's Fall 2008 Fashion Week earlier this year — pre-Vogue Italia — I counted the black models present at a selection of fashion shows. The numbers were as expected but pretty disappointing, save for impressive showings from Diane Von Furstenburg and, of course, Tracy Reese.

So did Vogue Italia change the fashion world? At the Spring 2009 shows, currently taking place in Bryant Park, things certainly haven't get worse, and many designers that only had one black model in their shows at least doubled the number this time around. Fashion week isn't over yet, but here's a guess — designers might not care to drastically alter their formulas, but few, if any, will dare have an all-white show.

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Although the recent LeBron James Vogue cover didn't do so well on the stands for what, perhaps, are obvious reasons, there's a lot of speculation that the all-black issue of Vogue Italia will exceed money-making expectations. For one thing the issue — see sneak-peek pics* from Naomi Campbell's Vogue Italia spread above and below — has received international attention. For another thing, far more ads were sold for this special issue than normal. Sure, part of it is the novelty aspect. But it also dispels the myth that black models can't sell magazines or products.

“We’re all conditioned to see beauty,” [said model Veronica Webb], and the magazine, filled with photos of glamorous black models, “helps to condition people’s eyes. When you look at page after page after page of beautiful, gorgeous dark girls, you go, ‘Wow! Wow! Wow! I want some of that. How can I do it?’ ”

Webb noted that advertising in the special issue is up 30 percent over a normal edition. But, to underline the problem the industry has with diversity, nearly every one of the ads features white models.

*Some NSFW

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Donyale Luna, a Detroit-born model originally named Peggy Ann Freeman, became the first black woman to grace a Vogue cover when she appeared on the cover of British Vogue in 1966. It would be 8 more years until Beverly Johnson would similarly segregate the cover of American Vogue. Below, check out some (not all) American Vogue covers featuring black models, actresses, and female (y'all have seen that LeBron cover more than enough) athletes. Who do you think will be next?

Don't expect to see many black models at Paris Fashion Week. Top designers, who are doing some preemptive damage control, say so themselves. They blame the agencies, which they say have a limited selection of models and color and an overwhelming number of Eastern Europeans.

"I asked the modelling agency for black girls for our next show but there simply aren’t any," said Mario Lefranc, half of the Lefranc-Ferrant designer duo, one of 40-odd labels presenting couture collections in Paris over the coming week.

"I’m sick of blonde Russian girls," he told AFP. "Clearly the trend now is all for blue-eyed blondes."

And at Jean-Paul Gaultier’s, a designer renowned for using models of all ages, sizes, and origins, one assistant said: "It’s really very difficult at the moment. There are no black models on the market, the agencies have none."

In the last few years, she added, "there’s been an invasion of girls from Eastern Europe, of their type of beauty."

We all know there are black models, so either the agencies aren't sending them or the designers are blaming agencies for the fact that they simply don't want them. Either way, the fashion industry won't change unless it wants to. And it doesn't seem like it's particularly interested. [AFP]

Remember that rumor that Lanvin's show in Paris over the weekend was supposed to have an "all-ethnic" lineup? Well, it did, if what they meant by "all-ethnic" (and, lets face it, that could mean a lot of things) was all white guys and one Asian guy. So perhaps the question posed in this post was pointless, and the "all-black" trend is not as trendy as I thought. Maybe now that a few bones have been thrown fashion will just go back to status quo, meaning zero diversity on the runway or in editorial spreads. And that means back to the drawing board.

Suddenly, after several years of being at the bottom of the fashion heap, black models are back on top. In a big way. Not only are they exclusively populating the pages of this month's super-hyped Vogue Italia, Wintour & Co. also begrudgingly gave them some attention. At Milan's Men's Fashion Week, the designers of Dsquared used a group of models, led by Tyson Beckford, made up almost entirely of black men. And rumor has it that Lanvin's show next week has an "all-ethnic lineup."

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Surprise, surprise: Barack Obama was one of Vogue Italia editor Franca Sozzani's inspirations when she decided to dedicate July's issue of her magazine to black models. Of course, he wasn't the only inspiration. Sozzani was well aware of the problem of the rapidly-disappearing black model. She wanted to address it and recruited famous photographer Stephen Meisel to bring her vision to the page. He spoke to the New York Times recently about working on the issue.

Having worked at one time with nearly all the models he chose for the black issue — Iman, Ms. Campbell, Tyra Banks, Jourdan Dunn, Ms. Kebede, Ms. Wek, Pat Cleveland, Karen Alexander — Mr. Meisel had his own feelings. “I thought, it’s ridiculous, this discrimination,” said Mr. Meisel, speaking by phone from his home in Los Angeles. “It’s so crazy to live in such a narrow, narrow place. Age, weight, sexuality, race — every kind of prejudice.”

Although Sozzani initially objected, Meisel also photographed America's Next Top Model cast-off Toccara Jones for the issue. "I met Toccara and thought, she’s beautiful," hes said "What’s the deal with her? She’s great and she’s sexy.” Good thing he never saw her on BET's Take the Cake. But like the nails-on-a-chalkboard quality of her voice, her beauty cannot be denied.

The issue hits European stands next Thursday. Click through for some sneak-peek photos, and expect to see more photos from the issue in the days to come.

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Black fashion junkies are anxiously awaiting Vogue Italia's July issue, which will only include black models. Who are some of the models you can expect to see in its pages? You'll see Jourdan Dunn, fashion's current (Black) it girl, of course. Also:

It's no longer just a rumor: Vogue Italia's July issue will only feature black models. Franca Sozzani, the magazine's editor-in-chief, said she wants to highlight the beautiful black girls that "nobody uses."

"We are using a lot of black models, like Iman, not only the models of today – a lot of different girls," she told the Independent. "Maybe in our country it is not the best idea. But I don't care. I think it is not my problem if they don't like it – it's their problem."