Halima Aden breaks stereotypical beauty standards (with pictures)

Thu 30 Aug 2018 | 04:40 PM

Hana Khaled

SEE-August30th: The 20-year old Somali-American model Halima Aden is the first woman to wear a hijab in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant.

The African model was selected as UNICEF ambassador along with Palestinian-American model Gigi Hadid whose father was once a Syrian refugee.

The 2 young women are well aware of the constant suffering of people in refugee camps especially Aden who was born in a refugee camp in Kenya before moving to the US with her mom at age seven.

“I was six and I can still remember that UNICEF sign and every single missionary who came to the camp. I forget names, but can never forget how they made me feel,” Halima said in an interview.

"I've never felt more beautiful than when I took the stage at the Miss Minnesota USA pageant and heard the roaring applause while wearing my hijab and burkini, a fully covered swimsuit often worn by Muslim women," she said.

Halima made a tremendous change in thee fashion industry; international brands started to be more open about the idea of hijab. She is part of Nike's campaign that offers sportswear for athletic women wearing hijab.

Society puts so much pressure on girls to look a certain way. I have much more to offer than my physical appearance, and a hijab protects me against ‘You’re too skinny,’ ‘You’re too thick,’ ‘Look at her hips,’ ‘Look at her thigh gap.’ I don’t have to worry about that," she added.

Halima is an inspiration for many insecure girls out there, she is a symbol of empowerment. She broke the barriers and could be part of the beauty and fashion industries with her confidence without the need to give up any of her beliefs or ideologies.