DITTA SANDICO Ditta wraps. Photographed by KARL KING AGUÑA for the April 2024 Issue of Vogue Philippines. Makeup & Hair: Zidjian Paul Floro. Stylist: Jason Mago of Gee Jocson Studio. Models: Laura Jhane, Lorraine Ojimba.
Filipino-Nigerian models Lorraine and Laura Ojimba on turning pain into power and the gift of sisterhood.
Sisters from a family of five girls, Filipino-Nigerian models Lorraine and Laura Ojimba admit that they weren’t exactly close growing up. Besides their shared humor and strong personalities, the sisters held opposing temperaments as young girls. “It was like my dad was raising five boys instead of five girls!” Lorraine remarks, laughing. “Because when you’re young, you always fight over small things,” Laura adds: “Everything is such a big deal! We would always steal each other’s stuff, like clothes. But when you grow old and then you barely hang out with your siblings, that’s when you really appreciate them more.”
Following in the footsteps of their eldest sister, Lorraine and Laura ventured into modeling as teenagers. At a time when the modeling industry in Manila had little to no Afro-Asian representation, the sisters stood out wherever they went. After accompanying her big sister to a shoot, 15-year-old Laura began to be casted in various modeling projects. Meanwhile, standing at five foot 10 in only her senior year in high school, Lorraine’s career took off inadvertently in the lobby of a condo complex, where an invitation to join a model search was extended to her.
But there was never a sense of rivalry between the two. The models share that they take pride in each other’s success. “I never really saw my sisters as competition,” Laura shares. “Because for me, whatever my sister’s achievements are is also my achievement at the end of the day. We’re siblings. What’s yours is mine, what’s mine is yours.”
Their journey, however, was not without challenges. Being Filipino-Nigerian, the sisters say it was easy to feel estranged in Manila. Laura recounts her struggle to find a place in both the Filipino and Nigerian community, where either her appearance or inability to speak the language often led to exclusion. “Growing up, I couldn’t really classify myself as Filipino because most of my features make me look black, and people would exclude me. But when I started having Nigerian friends, I also felt excluded because my dad never had the time to teach us how to speak Igbo.”
“Your sisters are the best people you can have in your life“
For the majority of their childhood, it was their Nigerian father who took the reins, teaching them how to dress and groom themselves and learning to tie their curly hair. “He was always so dedicated to making us look nice,” Lorraine shares, “because he knew that in this country, we would be judged physically.”
Their early years were laden with heartbreak, having to endure name calling and racism throughout school. “The bullying had a really bad impact on me,” Laura shares. “I won’t pretend that I’ve completely healed from it; it’s a trauma and it still bothers me. But I’ve made amends with it, with myself. I’m just happy now.
It was only after their mother’s breast cancer diagnosis that Laura was able to get an inkling of her Filipino roots. Under the guise of a summer vacation, Laura accompanied her mother on a short trip to her hometown in South Cotabato to retrieve medication. This would be the first time she set foot on Mindanao soil. “It was easier to actually be there,” she recalls. “No one looked at me the way people were looking at me here in Manila, na parang I’m so different. There, everyone had tan skin and natural curly hair, too. So when I was there I felt like I fit in for the first time ever.”
“When my mother passed, it was even harder for us because she was the Filipino,” Lorraine adds. “She was the person who justified how Filipino we were in the Philippines. Because now we don’t even have a Filipino figure to look up to.”
Alongside the likes of Afro-Filipino queens Alexie Mae Brooks, Chelsea Anne Manalo, and Matea Mahal Smith, Lorraine will be representing Quezon City in this year’s Miss Universe Philippines pageant. There is still much to be done in terms of representation and inclusivity in the Philippines, but all progress is worth celebrating. “To see how the modeling world or the industry has really progressed and accepted and embraced the different shades of women, especially the black women, of course, nakaka-proud siya. (It makes me proud.)”
Laura adds: “When [Lorraine] won, I took so much pride in it. For you to actually be recognized in this society, it means you’re doing something great. It means you’re also helping me, and you’re also helping other black kids. You’re helping my younger sisters have an easier life. Because now they’re thinking, black is beautiful. Black can be a beauty queen. Black can win. Black is also amazing.”
Laura didn’t realize it then, but she admits that Lorraine also played a big part in raising her to be who she is now. Now as a mom herself, she feels nothing but gratitude. “Everything that she taught me, now I get to pass on to my child,” she shares. “I’m really grateful for her for being patient with me during the times when no one could really handle me. But she was also pushing me and trying her best.”
“Your sisters are the best people you can have in your life,” she adds. “Everyone else will come and go later in life. But your sisters, these are the people who were with you from the beginning. That’s something no one can take away from me.”
By BIANCA CUSTODIO. Photographs by KARL KING AGUÑA. Beauty Editor JOYCE OREÑA. Makeup & Hair: Zidjian Paul Floro. Stylist: Jason Mago of Gee Jocson Studio. Models: Laura Jhane, Lorraine Ojimba.
- How the Vogue Philippines Casting Call Found Fresh Faces of Beauty in Mindanao
- A Lifetime Of Growing And Protecting Forests: Ann And Billie Dumaliang On Their Ongoing Battle For Conservation At Masungi Georeserve
- Muse of the Moment: How family, emotions, and Buddhism keep Thai actress AOKBAB grounded
- Home and Away: Breaking Down the Fashion in Vogue’s 2024 Beauty Issue Cover Story
