Michelle Obama declined to wear a headscarf or veil Tuesday when in Saudi Arabia, and it’s created a controversy on social media.
Though Saudi women are required to cover their heads, an exception is often made for foreigners visiting — something the first lady took to her advantage.
More than 1,500 tweets were sent using a hashtag in Arabic that translated to roughly “#Michelle_Obama_unveiled” or “Michelle_Obama_immodest,” according to the Washington Post.
Specifically, users wanted to know why she wore a headscarf on her recent trip to Indonesia and not in Saudi Arabia. Others said the first lady shouldn’t receive too much criticism, since her trip was extremely last minute. Others praised her, saying not wearing a scarf was a small jab at Saudi Arabia’s strict interpretation of Islamic law and the laws it imposes on women.
Ironically, President Obama spoke at length about the importance of women’s rights during an address in India earlier that day.
