DUBAI: On the closing day of Copenhagen Fashion Week, US Palestinian model, creative director and human rights activist Alana Hadid — who is the sister of supermodels Gigi and Bella Hadid — made a striking political and fashion statement when she wore a keffiyeh gown from Mailliw by William.
“I wear my pride wherever I go,” Hadid wrote on Instagram, posting photos of the gown as she strode down the street in Copenhagen.
Hadid on Wednesday took to Instagram to explain the symbolism behind the keffiyeh print and spotlight designers who have “highlighted the Palestinian cause over the years.”
Hadid recently sat down for an interview with The New Arab where she talked about her activism. “I’ve been talking about Palestine for a long time, and I’ve been saying that I’m a Palestinian for a long time, which, in a lot of ways, for a lot of people, was a revolutionary act,” she said.
“As a family, we’ve generated quite a large platform, and I felt like I would be ridiculous if I didn’t use it for this cause.”
Meanwhile, last year, her sister Bella Hadid also made a powerful fashion statement on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival by wearing a red-and-white dress inspired by the keffiyeh. The dress was by US designers Michael Sears and Hushi Mortezaie in 2001.
Bella shared pictures of the dress with her 61.1 million followers on Instagram, describing the ensemble as “a beautiful way to represent the history, labor of love, resilience, and most importantly the art of historic Palestinian embroidery.”
She then explained the meanings behind the patterns of the Palestinian keffiyeh, and how they symbolize various themes.
The olive leaves represent “strength, resilience and perseverance,” she wrote.
“The larger part of the keffiyeh is the fishnet pattern, which resembles the relationship between the Palestinian fisherman and the sea. It symbolizes abundance and grace,” she said. “To many of us, the sea also means freedom, especially to Palestinians living in the West Bank (who) have no access to the sea due to restricted movement.”
She added that the sea waves resemble the “strength and resilience” of those who “persevered after 73 years under military occupation and oppression.”
