Halima Aden Has A Higher Purpose

From a Kenyan refugee camp to america and representing, Hijabi Muslim women on runways, campaigns and covers, somali-american model and activist Halima Aden is now everywhere

- Andrea Sim

In 2017, a live video screening a 360 degree view of models wearing the Yeezy Season 5 collection probably had its audience wondering why they had to gather physically at Pier 59 in New York to witness a digital fashion presentation. Only after it cycled through all 29 looks did the models make their physical entrance, and as per the brand’s larger-than-life mastermind Kanye West’s track record, they were not all of the breed that fashion typically favours. There was Amina Blue, petite and just shy of 160cm; model-actor-It-boy Luka Sabbat; and the hijab-wearing Halima Aden, who very nearly didn’t make it into the line-up at all.

“They didn’t have the right attire. We got sent back to the hotel, and then I got a call at 10pm with my manager,” she says. “And they’re like, ‘Come back, come back. The stylist thinks she can make something work. We found a second look that you could wear that fits the modest dress requirements.’”

This callback proved to be pivotal for Aden and her career in multiple ways. It became her first runway, marking her rite of passage from pageant girl (she placed top 15 in 2017’s Miss Minnesota USA and signed with IMG after) to fashion girl, even if only by virtue of the show schedule, given that she also walked for Alberta Ferretti and Max Mara in a look that had been designed for her that same season. More significantly, it dawned on her that she didn’t have to change herself one bit to have a career in the industry. “I realised that fashion will meet you where you stand, and it’s okay to have differences,” says Aden.