Dolce & Gabbana’s Hijab Collection

Last week, luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana revealed their hijab (a veil used by Muslim women use to cover their hair) and abaya (a loose over-garment worn by some Muslim women) collection, featuring modest clothing in black and neutral hues while still incorporating their signature detailing.

Casting a white-passing model to show the collection instead of Middle Eastern, South Asians or other Muslim women who do not fit European beauty ideals leaves us wondering whether the brand’s new range is a celebration of diversity or just a marketing strategy, and is it even granting Muslim women more representation or just reducing the hijab, something they are often mocked and even attacked for, to a fashion statement with increasing profit as their main objective?

Muslims spent $266 billion on clothing & footwear in 2013, and a large number of the biggest buyers of couture reside in the Gulf, so catering to that untapped market doesn’t come as much of a surprise. While the numbers may deceive you into thinking that this is a fairly safe move, Dolce & Gabbana catering to the community in a time where Islamophobia is undeniably present and rising is actually quite risky. However, is this bold move meant to stand in solidarity with Muslims, or simply a ploy to financially benefit from them?

While the hijab is more of a religious symbol than a cultural one, it still holds a lot of meaning, and many Islamic cultures revolve around religion, so could this be a form of appropriation? Appropriating culture in the name of fashion has become some sort of trend, a pattern which can be seen everywhere from Valentino’s cornrows to Victoria’s Secret’s Native American headdresses, so could the Dolce & Gabbana be following that same trend?

Last autumn, H&M’s advert featured a Muslim model in a hijab, gaining a lot of praise and positive feedback, possibly creating a ripple effect. Brands like DKNY, Oscar de la Renta and Tommy Hilfiger have also produced pieces targeting the Muslim market. While both H&M and Dolce & Gabbana featured hijabis in their ads, H&M did it in a much more inclusive way by using a Muslim model of Pakistani and Moroccan heritage. The high end brand’s new line is already on sale in the Middle East, but will eventually be sold in select stores worldwide, possibly taking abayas to the mainstream. On one hand, this could be a good thing as it may help eliminate the fear associated with these garments by familiarizing people with them, but that is quite unlikely to say the least. Instead, using a white-passing model to showcase their Eastern-inspired collection essentially says that other cultures should only be celebrated when glamorized by Western cultures. It also dismisses those who suffer for choosing to wear hijabs, while ignoring those who are oppressed and don’t even have that choice in the first place.

The GCC is the biggest market for most high-end brands such as Dolce & Gabbana, so you’d expect such a luxurious brand to have done their research before targeting a certain audience, especially when including a religious symbol. Frankly, their collection says otherwise. The abayas look outdated, and a few are even see-through, which completely defies the essence of abayas– modesty, making me wonder who actually designed this collection.

However, could the introduction of looser, more modest pieces to high fashion combat the highly sexualized fashion industry which pressures women to look and dress a certain way?