The Somali-American model Halima Aden (23) no longer wants to participate in fashion shows. The fashion world endangered her religious beliefs, she says.
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Aden, the first model with a headscarf on the cover of Vogue, shared on Instagram how she sometimes had to skip prayer and wear clothes that made her feel uncomfortable. Also, her hijab was sometimes styled in a way that betrayed her values, she said. “I should have left the set because the stylist clearly didn’t have a woman with a hijab in mind.”
In one of the photos she describes how she was crying afterwards in her hotel room because she felt deep inside that it was not right. “But I was too scared to say it.” She also points out that she had to pave the way for others. “I had to make those mistakes to become the role model you can rely on.”
More than brands and parades
Aden, who was born in a UN refugee camp in Somalia, came to the US with her mother at the age of six. She caught the eye when she entered the 2016 US beauty pageant wearing a hijab and a burkini. A year later she was the first model with a headscarf to sign with the agency IMG and she also stepped on the catwalk for Yeezy, the Kanye West brand during New York fashion week.
Her contract stated that there was no discussion about her headscarf. “It’s a substantial part of my identity,” she said. Aden also has its own hijab collection, Halima x Modanisa.
But she didn’t stop at fashion alone. Aden actively searches for initiatives as a ‘fashion activist’. She is ambassador for the # Togetherband campaign, which draws attention to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN. “My fashion career is more than brands and fashion shows, we’re not here to sell high heels” because they make you feel sexy. ”
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