
Earlier this week Michelle Obama supposedly sparked controversy in Saudi Arabia by foregoing wearing a headscarf during a visit with her husband to pay their respects to the late King Abdullah.
Several reportsaboutthesupposedbacklash over the First Lady not wearing a headscarf or a veil during her trip to the kingdom failed to mention one thing: there is no expectation that foreign women visiting will dress in the traditional abaya, wear a veil or headscarf and, in fact, Condoleeza Rice appears not to have worn a headscarf during the very same trip- to no international commentary or criticism.
The decision hardly sparked a Twitter storm, with an Arabic hashtag that translates as "Michelle Obama with no headscarf" or "Michelle Obama immodesty" being retweeted around 2,500 times in a country with around five million Twitter users.
It is not out-of-the-ordinary for visiting First Ladies or female leaders not to wear a headscarf, as these women show: