by
Chinwe
On November 26, 19-year-old Halima Aden became the first fully-covered Muslim to compete in the Miss Minnesota USA competition. She also became the first contestant to wear a burkini during the swimsuit round. Aden, who had no prior pageant experience, hoped that her participation would challenge the perceptions of beauty as well as misconceptions about Somalis and Islam.
I thought for a very long time that I had to conform or maybe change the way I look … or maybe the hijab was dimming my beauty. .. I took a moment and then I realized, you know what, there’s a lot of girls who do wear this and this is their reality. It just made me even more prouder to wear it. There is not one description for beauty. It has different faces, different stories, different backgrounds, and it’s OK to embrace all of those. – Aden told CBS
There is a small percent of people [in Minnesota] who have hate in their hearts. I think part of the problem is they’re not interacting with people who are Somali. – Aden told CBS
Aden was born in a Kenyan refugee camp but raised in St. Cloud, Minnesota. She describes her mom as her “rock” on Instagram.
Though Aden did not win the pageant, she did place into the semi-finals (the top 15 contestants), which is an accomplishment in itself. Hopefully she has opened the door for others to follow in her footsteps.
9 Responses
Wow is she gorgeous. Horn of Africa people are the most beautiful people on the planet
Beautiful woman. Is she fully Black Somali or mixed with Caucasian Arabs?
I ask because in some photos she looks Middle-eastern while in some she looks East African.
somali are a very mixed and diverse ethnic group, some have bantu roots, others niholotic roots or others arab roots,which are usually centuries old.
so in the same family you can have very different shades of black and brown,i have met from the lightest shade to darkest shade somali with all different facial features and hair textures but in general they all have quite similar features and built. I have seen somalis with her facial features with very dark skin so I highly doubt she’s mixed
Most Somalis are mixed with Arab
And it is not a “Burkini” she is wearing in the pictures but a hijab…Do your research first.
1. Reading is fundamental. Nothing was written about her wearing a burkini “in the pictures”.
2. She IS wearing a burkini designed by Modanisa in the third picture. Do your own research.
Enjoy your weekend!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BNgHgf3AWIM/
Please use Somali next time instead of Somalian, Thanks
Fixed.
Awesome, thanks