"We carry them in our hearts."
Huma Abedin Honored the Women of Afghanistan on Her Met Dress
The theme "In America: Lexicon of Fashion" inspired several bold statements on the Met Gala's cream carpet, from Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's "Tax the Rich"-scrawled Brother Vellies to Representative Carolyn Maloney's array of Equal Rights Amendment sashes and Cara Delevingne's "Peg the Patriarchy" vest. Huma Abedin sent a message of her own with a duo of pins on her classic black and pink Greta Constantine dress.
The first was a "memorial blue" ribbon from the 9/11 Museum in New York marking the 20th anniversary of the attack, "a physical reminder that we should never forget what happened in our beloved city, and the impact it had on so many of us, especially the victims, the family members, the survivors," Abedin told Vogue. She overlaid the ribbon with a U.S. and Afghanistan flag pin, signaling her "hope that we will not forget what the people of Afghanistan are facing as they go through this monumental and uncertain time." After a long career in government, including as deputy chief of staff to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, what Abedin worries about is: "the world forgets... there are families and women and children in crisis." She called her collection of pins "a tiny nod" to both 9/11 and Afghanistan: "We carry them in our hearts."
On a night paying homage to American fashion, Abedin's choice of Canadian designers—Greta Constantine's Kirk Pickersgill and Stephen Wong—was also rife with meaning. As Abedin pointed out, "Canada really made a significant statement by announcing early on that they were going to accept 20,000 Afghan refugees for a permanent resettlement."
"In America" has sparked examinations of national identity: the exhibit includes a white Prabal Guring dress from the designer's spring 2020 collection, with a sash asking the striking question: "Who gets to be American?" Abedin, the daughter of Indian immigrants, said she contemplates the answers in her forthcoming memoir, Both/And. "I ask the question, 'Who gets to define what an American is?'" she said. "The most important aspect of my identity was to be an American. I think that's something that a lot of immigrant families feel."
This story originally appeared on: Vogue - Author:Michelle Ruiz
