A Kardashian sister has uploaded a picture of themselves onto Instagram which means two things: some people are going to be happy and some people are going to be angry. That's 2015 for you – these are the incidents that play havoc with our spirit levels. However, this selfie is slightly different from the norm; it's a photo of Khloe Kardashian in a niqab, a piece of traditional clothing that Muslim women wear to cover their faces. She captioned it with "Habibi Love", the word "habibi" being an Arabic term of affection meaning "my love", making for a clunky translation.
Some hit out at Kardashian playing fast and loose with cultural signifiers. "I have never been more offended in my whole entire life," said one Instagram commenter. Others didn't see the issue. "Some people need to chill the fuck out," argued one. A small portion took some time out to lock into some Islamophobic trolling, 'cause 2015.
Kardashian was visiting Dubai where modest dress is encouraged, but wearing the niqab is not mandatory. It's not the first time that she's waded into a cultural appropriation debate. Last year she and two male friends dressed up for Halloween in traditional Arabian clothing and posted a picture to Instagram along with the confusing caption "Sheik Pussy". I don't even really know what that caption means.
Is it disrespectful of her to wear the niqab in Dubai? Would it also have been disrespectful to not adhere to any suggested dress codes whatsoever? Is this a case of "celebrity culturally appropriates with no respect for anything", or are we absolutely desperate to be outraged by everything?
Perhaps the only people with the right to make calls on whether this is offensive or not are Muslim women.
What do you think?
