Supermodel Bella Hadid is not one to shy away from embracing her roots, despite growing up in America, far away from her culture and homeland.
Speaking about her Arab heritage, the fashion icon, 23, had spoken to Harper’s Bazaar about how she learnt a great deal about Palestinian culture through her dad Mohamed Hadid.
She also talked about how Arab women inspired her, during her visit to Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque: “That was the best day of my life, when I went and saw the mosque in Abu Dhabi. I was talking to all of these Arab women and men, and finally understanding the culture a lot more than I ever really have.”
About spending Eid and Ramadan with her father and her extended family, Bella had said: “He would teach us about it and we would go and do Eid with my family and we would do Ramadan – I did that since I was a kid. Once I got older I was working and going to school so I couldn’t fast for as long. My dad, he’s so passionate about it, and that’s what kept me very passionate and excited about my roots.”
She also opened up about her father migrating from Palestine to America: “My dad was a refugee. He came from Palestine to America when he was a baby.”
“Thankfully, he was able to come, but it was very hard and now it’s probably 100 times harder. It makes me sad that power is getting taken from a lot of people and they’re not able to make a new life for their children and their families,” she continued.
“It’s crazy to me that one person can tell you whether or not you can have a better life,” she added.