How about collecting those instances when female political leaders and celebrities, especially leftist ones, don the hijab (Islamic headscarf) or other forms of Islamic headgear?
To the argument that the women pictured below are doing nothing different from non-Jewish men donning a kippah (yarmulke, skullcap) in a synagogue, I have three replies:
Jews are not trying to impose their ways on the West. Turned around, Western respect for Islamic customs is not sufficiently reciprocated.
A Jewish man praying with a tallit, or prayer shawl, over his head and upper torso.
In about half the pictures here, the women are not in a mosque or other religious place. In their cases, the comparison is irrelevant.
When they are in a mosque, the comparison of female head covering and male skullcap does not hold. Wearing a skullcap compares to taking one's shoes off on entering a mosque - a sign of respect. But wearing a hijab, especially the full hijab such as Laura Bush wore, is like a non-Jewish male putting on the talllit (prayer shawl). It is not a small symbolic step of respect but rather taking on an important aspect of the ritual of a religion not one's own.
(And for the opposite, I collected pictures of Muslim political woman who emphatically does not wear the hijab at "Glamorous Muslim Political Women.")
Oriana Fallaci, interviewing Ayatollah Khomeini in September 1979 in Qum, Iran. The interview lasted six hours and at one point, an indignant Fallaci removed her chador and threw it at Khomeini.
 Oriana Fallaci interviewing Ayatollah Khomeini, before she threw her chador at him. |
Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain dressed modestly but not in hijab while visiting a mosque in Kuala Lumpur in 1989.
 Queen Elizabeth hijab-less in a Malaysian mosque. |
Princess Diana during a 1996 visit to a cancer hospital in Pakistan. .
 Princess Diana in hijab in a Pakistan hospital. |
Hilary Clinton, when she was still wife of the U.S. president in 1997, traveled to Eritrea and put on a headscarf. Interestingly, her daughter Chelsea, seen in the background, did not.
 Hillary Rodham Clinton traveling in Eritrea in 1997 with a headscarf on. |
But on another occasion, Chelsea joined her in wearing a headscarf.
 Mother and daughter, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, wearing headscarves. |
Interesting that Hilary and Clelsea should be wearing headcovers while with Yasir Arafat.
 The two Clinton women cover there heads - out of respect for Yasir Arafat? |
Mona Sahlin, elected just two days ago the leader of Sweden's Social Democratic Party, famously donned a head piece when visiting a mosque on September 14, 2001.
 Swedish Social Democratic Party leader Mona Sahlin (right) in headscarf, speaking with Mahmoud Aldebe, chairman of the Swedish Muslim Association, on visiting a mosque in Stockholm. |
Prince Charles' wife, Camilla Parker Bowles, got into complete Egyptian Muslim garb, including hijab, on a visit to Al-Azhar.
 Camilla Parker Bowles with Prince Charles in Egypt. |
Janet Napolitano, the governor of Arizona, put on a hijab to address Muslims in Sun Angel Stadium on the eid in February 2004, but I cannot find any pictures of her.
Antje Vollmer, Green Party member and vice-president of the German Bundestag, visiting Riyadh as part of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's delegation in March 2005.
 Antje Vollmer, Green Party member and vice-president of the German Bundestag, in Hijab. |
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice visiting a mosque in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in October 2005, wearing a black cover on her hair.
Diane Sawyer of ABC's "Good Morning America" television program interviewed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wearing a hijab in February 2007.
 Diane Sawyer while interviewing Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. |
Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, donned a headscarf when she visited Damascus in April 2007.
 Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, in Damascus. |
Elsebeth Gerner Nielsen, a former Danish minister of culture (and someone with whom I have argued), wore a hijab near the parliament in April 2007.
 Elsebeth Gerner Nielsen, a former Danish minister of culture. |
In June 2007, three senior Bush administration staffers wore makeshift hijabs as they listened to the president address an audience at Washington's Islamic Center.
 Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Fran Townsend (far left), NSC Senior Director for European Affairs Judy Ansley (left), and Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen Hughes (right) listen to President Bush wearing makeshift hijabs. |
In July 2007, Marie Claire Style Director Cleo Glyde took "a wild hybrid for a spin on the beach in Venice and Santa Monica," modeling the Islamic suitsuit for an article titled "Are You Ready for the Burkini?"
 Cleo Glyde wearing a burkini in Los Angeles-area beaches. |
On a trip to Saudi Arabia in October 2007, George W. Bush's wife Laura wore a particularly severe-looking hijab.
 Laura Bush in Saudi Arabia. |
Angelina Jolie the actress also serves as a "Goodwill Ambassador" for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; in the latter capacity, she visited a eathquake-struck village in Pakistan in August 2007.
 Angelina Jolie, UNHCR goodwill ambassador, in a Pakistani village in August 2007. |
Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey wore a full hijab in Tehran in March 2008 as she signed a natural gas deal with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (March 19, 2008) Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey meets with Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran.
Comment: And what does one make of the male practice of holding hands, as George W. Bush did with Saudi king Abdullah?
Apr. 7, 2008 update: It's a bit off-topic, but the Stony Brook Muslim Student Association is sponsoring (along with the "wo/men's gender resource center") a "Scarves for Solidarity" day today. The announcement explains:
The purpose of Scarves for Solidarity is to help save battered women while spreading awareness about Islam. The Muslim Student Association is working with sponsors who plan to donate $5 to Battered Women's Shelter for every female who volunteers to wear a head-scarf/hijab on Monday, April 7th 2007.
Head-scarves will be available (FOR FREE) at the Union lobby between 12 pm and 3 pm throughout the week of Monday, March 31st. All that is required from you is to wear the scarf provided for you from 10am until 7:30 pm on April 7th. The scarves will all be the same color so that you can recognize other women volunteering to save battered women.
You are also invited to a discussion at 7:30 pm in SAC Ballroom B where you will have a chance to share your experience of wearing the hijab/scarf. (Refreshments will be served)
MSA then goes on to explain what the hijab is and how to wear it.
 The "Scarves for Solidarity" poster. |
Comment: Note this, non-Muslim women! You don't have to go to a majority-Muslim country or a mosque to wear a hijab. You can wear one in your normal life.
May 15, 2008 update: Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom wore a headscarf while visiting the Green Mosque in Bursa, Turkey.
 Queen Elizabeth in a Turkish mosque. |
Oct. 11, 2008 update: Sandra Pupatello (Liberal Party), Ontario's International Minister of International Trade and Development, wears a hijab on a visit to Riyadh.
 Sandra Pupatello, a Canadian politician, seems quite at home in her hijab. |
Jan. 15, 2009 update: The new Swiss ambassador to Tehran, Livia Leu Agosti, has stated she will observe Iran's Islamic dress code and wear a hijab during her mission.
 Livia Leu Agosti, the new Swiss ambassador to Iran, soon to be seen under a hijab. |
May 26, 2009 update: Norway's Queen Sonja wore a headscarf as she visited the mosque of the Islamic Cultural Centre Norway in Oslo.
 Norway's Queen Sonja. |
June 4, 2009 update: Hillary Clinton, now U.S. secretary of state, donned a hijab to tour the Sultan Hassan Mosque in Cairo along with Barack Obama. Her beatific look prompted CNN producers to post the picture and invite readers to submit captions for it, and 287 of them did so.
 U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Sultan Hassan Mosque in Cairo. |
This official White House caption for the photograph below reads: "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recounts a story to President Barack Obama, Senior Advisors David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett, outside the Sultan Hassan Mosque in Cairo, Egypt.
 Two top American officials, Valerie Jarrett and Hillary Clinton, wear color-coordinated hijabs in Cairo. |
Sep. 10, 2009 update: Livia Leu Agosti, Swiss ambassador to Iran, wears a yellow hijab while negotiating with Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki (second from right)..
 The Swiss ambassador with (left to right) the Russian ambassador, the French ambassador, and Iran's Foreign Minister Mottaki. |
Oct. 29, 2009 update: Hillary Clinton, U.S. secretary of state, shown at the Iqbal Memorial in Lahore with Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
 Hillary Clinton in Pakistan, ironically while visiting the shrine of a modernist Islamic thinker, Muhammad Iqbal. |
Oct. 30, 2009 update: Another hijab'd Hillary in Pakistan; is this also at the Iqbal Memorial?
 Hillary Clinton, still in Pakistan. |
Mar. 22, 2010 update: Lene Espersen, the foreign minister of Denmark, donned a hijab and various scarves on paying a visit to her Afghan counterpart in Kabul, Zalmai Rassoul. That Rassoul wore a well-appointed Western suit to meet her meant that each official wore the other's clothing. The accompanying news report indicates that while President Hamid Karzai appreciates her gesture, she need not wear a hijab when she meets him, suggesting that Espersen took this initiative of her own accord.
 The Danish and Afghan foreign ministers meet in Kabul, each wearing the other's clothing. |
 Lene Espersen may wear a hijab but her demeanor suggests she does not usually do so. |
Apr. 20, 2010 update: Claudia Roth, leader of the German Green Party, looks radiant in a pink hijab on a visit to Iran.
 Claudia Roth of Germany's Green Party. |
Oct. 26, 2010 update: Bettina Wulff, wife of Germany's President Christian Wulff, donned the hijab during a trip to Turkey.
 Bettina Wulff accompanies her husband, the German president, in Turkey. |
Nov. 10, 2010 update: Michelle Obama, wife of Barack, donned a beige animal-print hijab on a visit to the Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta – and looked none to pleased about having to wear it.
 Michelle Obama looks unhappy touring an Indonesian mosque in hijab. |
Nov. 25, 2010 update: Here's a two-fer of British women in Abu Dhabi. The lesser example is Ffion Hague, wife of Williami Hague, the foreign minister, done up in a fairly standard hijab.
 Ffion Hague in hijab by her husband, British foreign minister William Hague. |
And then there is Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, in head gear that makes her look like the royal beekeeper. Who came up with this preposterous thing? For more pictures of them both, see today's Daily Mail.
 Queen Elizabeth II emerges shyly in her Shar'i-compliant outfit. |
 The royal beekeeper? |
Sep. 12, 2011 update: Ann Curry, co-anchor of NBC's morning television program Today, got herself bundled up to follow Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, around for the day and pepper him with puff-ball questions.
 Ann Curry, reporting from Tehran. |
Sep. 21, 2011 update: Livia Leu Agosti, Swiss ambassador to Iran, helped negotiate the release of American hostages and then mugged for the cameras with them under a fetching pale blue hijab.
 A Swiss diplomat in Tehran. |
Oct. 11, 2011 update: Kim Kardashian put on an abaya-like outfit made especially for her while in Dubai.
 Kim Kardashian in Dubai. |
Oct. 14, 2011 update: According to SplashNews, Kardashian also tried on a niqab while in an abaya.
 What may be Kardashian in a niqab. |
Jan. 8, 2012 update: Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and Crown Princess Máxima put on headscarves and long gowns during a visit to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
 The Dutch queen in a mosque in Abu Dhabi; another royal beekeeper? |
May 6, 2012 update: She's not a famous political woman but Cheryl Borman, a civilian, non-Muslim defense attorney (paid by the American taxpayer) representing accused 9/11 co-conspirator Walid bin Attash, not only wears a hijab at "all times" when she in the presence of her client "out of respect" for his beliefs; she also calls for other women in the legal process to wear "appropriate" clothing.
 Cheryl Borman at the Guantánamo hearing. Sketch by Janet Hamlin, reviewed by the U.S. Department of Defense. |
Sep. 13, 2012 update: Princess Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, donned a hijab to visit Assyakirin Mosque in Kuala, the biggest in Malaysia.
 The UK's Princess Kate, 30, goes all-white for her first official mosque visit, in Malaysia. |
Sep. 23, 2012 update: Tammy Duckworth, the Democratic Party candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in an Illinois district, wore a hijab while speaking at an Islamic cultural center in Villa Park.
 Tammy Duckworth breaks new American ground by campaigning in a hijab. |
Nov. 26, 2012 update: Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change, wore a headscarf when addressing the 18th United Nations Convention on Climate Change in Doha, Qatar.
 A United Nations bureaucrat dons a headscarf in Qatar for her official duties. |
Feb. 25, 2013 update: A new blog of mine, "Islamist Media Digitally Cover Up Prominent Western Women," reports on those cases where women don't cover up enough for Islamist taste, so the censors do the job for them via Photoshop.
Apr. 22, 2013 update: She's not your typical political woman but Edwina Storie, Australian soft-porn actress turned Press TV reporter, does deserve note. Here she is in the old days:
 Edwina Storie as model. |
And here she is now, working for the Islamic Republic of Iran:
 Edwina Storie reporting for Iranian television. |
May 4, 2013 update: Western political women don't have to wear hijabs. Here's an example: Queen Sylvia of Sweden and another woman visiting the Fittja Grand Mosque in Stockholm as part of the 40th anniversary celebrations of King Carl XVI Gustaf's accession to the throne. Neither has put on a hjiab.
 The Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf (center) and Queen Sylvia (third from right) welcomed in a Stockholm mosque by the Turkish imam (third from left). |
July 4, 2013 update: The singer Madonna, an honorary political woman, posted a photo from the forthcoming Harper's Bazaar magazine showing herself in a chainmail mask in niqab style. The words "The Revolution of Love is on...Inshallah" accompany the picture. Perhaps this harks back to her frustrated intent to appear in a Muslim bridal dress in a music video. Perhaps it refers in some way to the breakup with her devout Muslim boyfriend, Brahim Zaibat.
 Madonna posing in a chainmail niqab. |
Oct. 20, 2013 update: Rihanna is a pop star, not a political woman, but she has an impact. Here she is in her usual format, on the cover of GQ magazine:
And here she is in front of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi:
Oct. 22, 2013 update: Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, now UN Development Program administrator, put on a severe black hijab for her visit to Tehran.
 UNDP's Helen Clark (l) with Iran's Vice President Massoumeh Ebtekar (r). |
Jan. 19, 2014 update: Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson appeared in a "burkini" while swimming at Bondi Beach, Sydney. She attributed the get-up to her former husband, Charles Saatchi, who did not want her tanned.
 Nigella Lawson splashing off the Australian coast. |
Jan. 30, 2014 update: Baroness Emma Nicholson has been appointed Britain's trade envoy to Iraq. She routinely wears hijabs, for example, in the marshes of Iraq.
 Baroness Emma Nicholson, Britain's new trade envoy to Iraq. |
Mar. 10, 2014 update: High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy for the European Union Catherine Ashton and all her female colleagues (one of whom is pictured below) wore hijabs while conducting formal negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Note that the aide appears to be wearing a European Union hijab.
 Catherine Ashton and colleagues wearing hijabs. |
Apr. 7, 2014 update: Betsy Hodges, the mayor of Minneapolis, wore a hijab when she traveled to a Somali mall in the south of the city to talk to business owners and community leaders. Last October, Hodges declared and tweeted: "I wore the Hijab and it changed me."
 Mayor Betsy Hodges of Minneapolis. |
May 3, 2014 update: The Iranians have gone one better and actually designed and gifted Ashton with an Iranian dress for use in future meetings. According to its designer, Mitra Tamjidi, Ashton "has received it and warmly welcomed its design. Her chief of staff has called for designing another dress for her."
 A model shows off Mitra Tamjidi's custom-made dress for Catherine Ashton. |
June 24, 2014 update: For the second time (see July 4, 2013), the entertainer Madonna has posted a picture of herself in pseudo-Islamic garb, this time in a niqab-like outfit on her Instagram account.
 Madonna preens in a niqab-like outfit. |
June 25, 2014 update: Sue Southern, head of the UK's West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit, wore a hijab at the Birmingham Central Mosque as she made a statement warning Muslim parents about their children going off to fight as jihadis.
 Sue Southern discussing jihad. |
Oct. 29, 2014 update: Singer Katy Perry put on a hijab-like headcovering while visiting a spice store in Marrakesh, Morocco.
 Katy Perry shopping in Marrakesh. |
Nov. 26, 2014 update: Pop star Beyoncé wears a niqab-like headcover while showing her belly and the bottom of her breasts in her Superpower video that seems to celebrate Ferguson, Missouri-style lawbreaking.
 Beyoncé wears her unique version of a niqab. |
Jan. 1, 2015 update: Pop star Selena Gomez donned an abaya while visiting Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque – but then countered this with a coquettish turn of the ankle.
 Selena Gomez in abaya. |
She and her troop posed in abayas but hammed it up outside the mosque.
 Selena Gomez and her troop. |
Jan. 2, 2015 update: Gomez took down the picture of herself from her Instagram account - not because of the abaya but because of the ankle.
Jan. 25, 2015 update: Croatia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Vesna Pusic wore an elaborate headscarf concoction while visiting Tehran.
 Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif with Croatian Foreign Minister Pusic. |
Feb. 4, 2015 update: Socialite/actress Nicole Richie put on a hijab while visiting Dubai.
 Nicole Richie in Dubai. |
Apr. 18, 2015 update: Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop donned a hijab-like covering to meet with Iranian leaders in Tehran.
 Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop in Tehran. |
May 9, 2015 update: That Laura Boldrini, president of Italy's Chamber of Deputies, donned a hijab is hardly news these days. But what makes this incident unusual is that she put it on when visiting a Sikh community center in Cremona. (Note the appearance of those men surrounding her.)
 Laura Boldrini of Italy in Italy among Sikhs. |
May 26, 2015 update: American celebrity Khloé Kardashian dressed in a niqab for an Instagram picture under the caption "Habibi Love," apparently just for the fun of it. In just 11 hours, it has been "liked" 670,000 times.
 Khloé Kardashian at play. |
May 29, 2015 update: Marine Le Pen met with the grand imam of Al-Azhar in Cairo, Ahmed el-Tayeb, and she did not put on a hijab.
 Marine Le Pen meeting with the grand imam of Al-Azhar in Cairo, |
July 28, 2015 update: Federica Mogherini, the European Union's foreign minister, wore a big red hijab during her visit to Tehran; and at least one EU female colleague also went native.
 Federica Mogherini negotiating in Tehran. |
Apr. 16, 2016 update: Mogherini's Tehran outfit last July was red, this April it's blue. Which makes her look worse? What will it be next time? Aug. 8, 2017 update: The next time, it turns out, is an ungainly black.
 Federica Mogherini can't stay away from Tehran or hijabs. |
Aug. 28, 2016 update: French Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal wore a hijab at a news conference in Tehran.
 French Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal (L) with Iran's Minister of State for Environmental Protection Masoumeh Ebtekar at a press conference in Tehran. |
Dec. 8, 2016 update: Germany's Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen and her female colleagues are not wearing any Islamic coverings during their visit. The authorities did not comment but some Saudis protested.
 Germany's Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen dressed in Saudi Arabia as she would in Germany. |
Jan. 30, 2017 update: Kathleen Wynne, the openly gay premier of Ontario, not only put on a heavy hijab but sat at the back of the Masjid Toronto before delivering remarks to the congregation.
 Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne (R) sits with another woman at the back of the Masjid Toronto. |
Feb. 12, 2017 update: In an extraordinary display of submission, the leaders of Sweden's "feminist foreign policy," including Trade Minister Ann Linde and her female colleagues marched in a line past the president of Iran, , displaying multi-colored hijabs, chadors, and manteaux. Comment: What a farce.
 In what's been dubbed the "walk of shame," five Swedish governmental figures, including a minister, submit to Iranian clothing diktats. |
Feb. 21, 2017 update: Has the backlash begun? While visiting Beirut, Marine le Pen of France's National Front party, refused to put on a hijab on entering a mosque, scuttling an appointment with Lebanon's grand mufti. She noted that no such requirement existed to go to Al-Azhar in Cairo.
 Marine le Pen, hijab-less in Beirut. |
May 1, 2017 update: Katy Perry turned to an antisemite (John Galliano) for an appallingly ugly hijab-style outfit for the Met Gala.
 Katy Perry at the premier New York City fashion event of the year. |
Comment: This reminds me of the outlandish research by academics and the bizarre products of artists: in the effort to be original, they wander into the outlandish.
June 25, 2017 update: Rachel Notley, the premier of Canada's Alberta Province, put on a hijab to deliver a Eid Mubarak message to Muslim Albertans.
 Rachel Motley, addressing Muslim Albertans: "I understand that these are uncertain times for many in the Muslim community." |
Feb. 18, 2018 update: Prime Minister Theresa May participated in #VisitMyMosque day and donned a hijab for the occasion.
 Theresa May addressing a UK mosque audience. |
Feb. 22, 2018 update: Sigrid Kaag, foreign minister of the Netherlands, is well covered and cheerful as she meets with Mohammad Javad Zarif, her Iranian counterpart, in Tehran. Note the same backdrop as in the Mogherini picture above, on Apr. 16, 2016.
 Dutch foreign minister Sigrd Kaag. |
May 7, 2018 update:Visiting Tehran, Sweden's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Annika Söder wore a hijab while a female colleague wore a lesser headgear.
 Sweden's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Annika Söder and female colleague. |
Mar. 17, 2019 update: New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ahern put on a particularly severe black hijab to honor the 50 killed in a Christchurch mosque.
 New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ahern paying her respects to Muslims. |
Oct. 17, 2019 update: Kate Middleton, wife of the UK's Prince William, wore an informal hijab and shalwar kameez on visiting a mosque in Pakistan.
 Kate Middleton in Pakistan. |
Nov. 23, 2019 update: Sarah Ferguson, ex-wife of the UK's Prince Andrew, bafflingly wore a male-Saudi style headgear at the Misk Global Forum in Riyadh.
 Sarah Ferguson trying to look like a Saudi male. |
Jan. 7, 2020 update: Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the U.N. secretary-general's special representative for the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, not only attended the funeral of Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, but did so in hijab.
 Dutch politician Jeanine Hennis in Iraq. |
