Parsons is the future of the fashion industry in NYC and has brought names like Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, and Jason Wu into the industry. For aspiring designers, it's the place to be, and we worked really hard not just while we've been here, but to get into the hallowed halls. 

It's a tradition for final year fashion thesis students to get a degree show and runway, and we have worked our asses off to get there--for us it's the key to our dreams and show who we are as young artists. Due to the corona virus, our runway show, awards and festival were cancelled-often these shows invite celebrities, Vogue magazine, Paper magazine, other press and industry leaders to see the work of students and help them launch their careers. These events are the height of our Parsons careers. We are all heartbroken to not be able to show any work at all we've worked all year on and believe fashion and physical work need to be physically seen.

My classmates are the most inspiring people I know- I have been so lucky to be surrounded by people who are all working to make their dreams come true and inspire me to push creative and political boundaries and be fearless. Creating a collection costs tons of money, sweat, blood and tears-most of us put our lives on hold, work 20 hour days everyday each week. Our work is our whole lives. 

By losing these awards, degree show and runway, many international students are worried about getting artist visas and are afraid of losing everything they've worked for the past 8 years. This showcase also helps the rest of us launch brands and start careers-it's like how an NFL recruitment would work. 

Please help us keep the tradition alive and give us a space to show our hard work, passion and dreams. While the virus leaves everything uncertain, we'd love to reschedule some type of event for September during fashion week.