In her interview with Lauren Wasser, Sarah Karmali opens with word verve: “Lauren Wasser regularly forgets that she doesn’t have legs. "All the time," she says, laughing. "And my girlfriend forgets, my mother forgets... When I’m wearing trousers, you can’t even tell." In fact, her gleaming gold prosthetic limbs have become an integral part of her identity.

The Paris sitdown takes place exactly 10 years to the day since the golden girl Wasser was first hospitalised with toxic-shock syndrome [TSS]. In a catastrophic sequence of medical events, the model went into organ failure and experienced a heart attack. With a one percent chance of living, Lauren Wasser eventually underwent a double-leg amputation.

Lauren Wasser is back now as ‘the Girl with the Golden Legs’, working with luxury brands including closing the Louis Vuitton Cruise 2023 show in San Diego, Wasser’s birth place. Cathy Kasterine styles the model in Celine by Hedi Slimane, Chanel, Christopher Kane, Louis Vuitton, Miu Miu, Prada and more, in fabulous images by Richard Phibbs [IG]. / Hair by Kenna; makeup by Vicky Steckel

"It was a real pinch-me moment," she says. "Nicolas [Ghesquière] is an angel; he saw me for me." Lauren Wasser is often sitting in the front row at Balenciaga, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton. "I’m so proud of how far I’ve come and that I survived that time – that darkness," she tells me. "I had to endure so much pain and suffering... I’m proud that I didn’t give up and that I didn’t let it stop me from living my life."

For AOC, Lauren Wasser is another of the women we think of when women models and sports figures making mega millions of dollars a year captivate millions of followers with laments about their sad, stressful lives.

Sorry, it’s a major Anne flaw in my personality not being as sympathetic as the masses. Give me women with backbone any day . . . women like Lauren Wasser. This young woman has been to hell and back — seriously contemplating ending her life on more than one occasion.

Brought up in LA, the athletic daughter of two former models, Wasser turned down a basketball scholarship to embark on her own career in fashion. "Growing up, [my body] was something that I thought was untouchable," she muses. After her amputation, Wasser describes how she had to rebuild herself "from the inside out and really see what life was about – that it was about so much more than just the physical form".

Today Lauren Wasser’s legs make her a heroine among young children. Her golden legs — her ‘trophies’, as she calls them — inspire thoughts that she is transhuman, or a real-life superhero come to visit them.

AOC has covered Lauren Wasser for years, and this is the first interview in which she truly is breaking out beyond her specific activist work on TSS specifically. Wasser is now on the big stage where she is a star for all humans who are dealing with disability.

AOC Votes Lauren Wasser for Ukraine

I can see the girl with the golden legs visiting with Ukrainians whose bodies have been savaged by Putin’s unjust war. Of course, the very cost of golden arms and legs for these people is not within the national budget — although I am in contact with a high-level medical group in Ukraine committed to putting bodies back together.

With fashion’s commitment to Ukraine, I actually recommended to this doctor’s and civic leader’s group that we reach out to Lauren Wasser and enlist her in this effort in the coming months. If the group evolves as hoped, you can expect AOC to be one of the strongest American voices in the initiative.

Doing a fresh Google search, Wasser’s San Diego is already very involved in the effort: UC San Diego Physician, Alumni Partner to Provide Prosthetic Limbs for Ukrainian Amputees.

. . . And South Sudan, Too

AOC’s history in Africa, especially in Sudan and South Sudan, is also grade A. And when one writes about Ukraine, an accusatory rebuttal on Africa is not far behind in some minds.

In today’s world, it would be great for our roster of totally-fabulous models with highest-level connections into luxury brands to decide to organize on behalf of the region. With so much women-of-color talent now available to lead, it’s best for women like me to follow their lead. AOC is always ready and waiting to engage.

The Harper’s Bazaar UK interview ends with strong words from Lauren Wasser and they are words that resonate with all peoples:

Wasser is breaking new ground in the industry – "creating a lane that’s never been created before" – and becoming a role model by making it her life’s work to inspire others. "The one thing I’ve learnt in this journey is to own what you may not like about yourself," she says. "Because if you accept it and you’re proud of it, nobody can say shit about it. Just be you. That’s the most beautiful thing, because there’s only one of you."

Sending big love to Lauren Wasser! And I mean BIG love. ~ Anne