Bella Hadid Says She's 'Proud to Be a Muslim'
Like other young women her age, Bella Hadid, a social media star with more than 11 million followers, is an open book, broadcasting nearly every aspect of her life.
However, for the first time the 20-year-old model has revealed that she and her siblings were raised Muslim.
In a new interview in Porter magazine, she said, “[Mohamed Hadid] was a refugee when he first came to America. So [Trump’s immigration policy is] actually very close to home for my sister and brother and me,” she states. “He was always religious, and he always prayed with us. I am proud to be a Muslim.”
Her father was born in Israel and lived in Syria and Lebanon before moving to the United States at 14.
While Bella has been mostly quiet about her background, her sister Gigi appeared last month on the cover of the first ever issue of Vogue Arabia wearing a hijab, proudly talking about her Palestinian background.
The model sisters also attended a protest together with their mother Yolanda in New York City in January after President Donald Trump instituted a travel ban on six major Muslim countries. The 20-year-old was pictured carrying a sign that read “We are all humans.”
Speaking to Elle after New York’s No Ban No Wall march, Bella explained why it was so important to her and her family: “I come from a really diverse background. We shouldn’t treat people as if they don’t deserve kindness just because of their ethnicities. It’s just not right.”
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