We already talked about Angelina Jolie’s trip to Pakistan early today, but new photos have just been released, and I wanted to use them. If you wanted the information about Jolie’s trip, or the donation pages for the UNHCR, go here. Anyway, in addition to making a plea for more funding for the UNHCR mission in Pakistan – or just funding in general, directed anywhere to help the Pakistani refugees – Angelina also did a short interview with the Associated Press:
She speaks with such passion – just a small quirk, though – did she mispronounce “irreparable”? Anyway, she says in part, “It’s extraordinarily complex situation. These are very, very long, extended situations that need our constant support for a very, very long time.” Also, just a note about her hijab – is anyone else amused that Angelina picked out an big, black ensemble for her trip? She has colorful hijabs, I’ve seen her wear them before. I guess she thought, “Oh, this is a tragedy, I should wear all black, like always.” Instead of looking like she’s grief-stricken, however, she’s giving me Grim Reaper vibes. And I only say that because I love her – Angelina, go back to the colorful hijabs!
Angelina Jolie in Pakistan on Sept. 7, 2010. Credit: WENN.
go angie!!
No, she did not mispronounce irreparable. It can be pronounced either way. And why wear anything colorful when there is nothing colorful about where she is. Besides, there are other women wearing black and they look like women in charge rather than just ordinary women on the street in Pakistan.
Angelina gave an intelligent, knowledgeable interview, as usual. Good for her.
good for her! all (compassionate) attention that can be brought to this part of the world helps.
I hope everyone donates. 😀 Love her. I think the hijab is very nice, its amazing with the red trim. I am not huge hijab person anyway I don’t care what color they are. Angelina just likes black, its a color she enjoys wearing I don’t think she wore it for any other reason than that. I find it hard to believe she even thinks that way.
I love the fact that she respects the culture enough to wear the appropriate clothing. And I think wearing bright colors on that trip would have been insulting to the sad situation.
Sort of like wearing loud colors to a funeral. It’s just rude.
Yeah, she mispronounced it. I think she sounds really self-conscious when she speaks. No big deal, really- the work is what counts.
Of course we’ll comment on what she wears, though. I liked her eyeliner.
For years I could not pronounce irreparable or congratulations,those words and many others would come out in fast mumble,anyway…she sounds really passionate about this and its such a tragedy which will take decades to solve.
She’s just gross. Such a poser. It’s nice she “brings attention” to these areas and events, I suppose, but she’s such a phony it actually has the opposite effect and turns people off. And dumb as a doorpost.
Maybe she’ll start fading away soon. As she ages, her lack of acting prowess will become more apparent, since she’s already starved herself out of sexy and believable action star.
@ Phantom Goddess, I really hate the fact that the “culture” she is trying to help disrepects her as a western woman so much that she is forced to wear their creepy, totally sexist, coverup garb. This is a woman whose time is very valuable, and she’s giving it to these people for free. They should show her some respect, and not expect her to conform to their 7th century customs or rules.
Oh she is SOOOOOO good at what she is doing…so good. It works. Not many can work it…she can totally work it.
Go Angie! – love it. She has the choice of sitting back in the south of France sipping wine, having nannies take care of her kids and bangin’ Brad at night. She chose to go to Pakistan and do what she can. I think she’s great.
Close to the end of the message it sounds as it she received a text message, maybe it was from Brad? Angelina is doing a good thing, I hope Pakistan gets the help it needs.
I don’t like that she wears a hijab. There are women in Pakistan and other Islamic countries that would prefer not to wear it, but are pretty much forced to (I work with two such women—one from Afghanistan and one from Iraq. They only wore a burqa/hijab because they were forced to. Now they don’t cover their hair at all. And you know what?—they are not “bad Muslims” or “scarlet women”). How about Angelina goes there as her regular self and in that way shows support for the women who would also like to freely make the choice about covering their hair or not? I don’t have to respect every element of everyone’s culture if I disagree with the reasoning behind something they do, nor does every host nation need to respect and accept/allow every single one of the traditions and values of every immigrant community (i.e. female genital mutilation—it is a cultural tradition in quite a few countries in Africa).
I admire that she uses her celebrity status for good. If it raises more awareness and more tolerance for each other than its a good thing.
No sure why people hate someone who is trying to make a difference rather than be a self-indulgent nit-wit like Paris or Lohan.
she looks alike Virgin Mary on the pix(and she knows it)
Isn’t it nice that all of her hair and makeup was done so she would look so beautiful for the pictures? The eye makeup especially. I always enjoy looking at her gorgeous eyes and wonder if she does them herself..or if she travels to these countries with her hair and makeup artist. Hmmm..??
Oh yea…and it WOULD BE NICE if someone would give her a burger. With the bun. She does NOT have to look like the people she is bringing attention to to help them. She looks so unhealthy. ?? I don’t get it.
She has the ugliest veiny hands for such a pretty woman. They look 15 years older than the rest of her.
Mistral do you not see all the Pakistan women wearing hijabs in the picture above? Angie is following the local culture there and being respectful to their customs. A lot of the woman like the hijabs and in fact awhile ago in France they tried to outlaw them and the women were pissed. They wanted to wear them, its part of their religion. Its just respectful, no American woman or politician has gone there and not wore some sort of head scarf.
Hell, we all have words we can not pronounce, my brother who is an MD still stumbles over the word ‘ambulance’ he still says ‘ambliance’ if he is rushed. I fight with the pronunciation of the word peculiar, somehow I manage to get another ‘u’ into it, I sound like G.W. Bush trying to say nuclear. I guess we all have our verbal bug-a-boos.
it’s quite pretty with the wine/red trim.
she kind of reminds me of emperor palpatine in some of the shots
If it were my favorite color, trimmed with silver embroidery, I would still find it hideous since it is representative of the complete subjugation of all women by the men of this country. There are muslim countries that do not require visiting western women to cover their heads. I’ve been to two muslim countries and did not wear one.
“she kind of reminds me of emperor palpatine in some of the shots”
Pardon my lapse in memory here, but wasn’t he the bad guy in Star Wars? 😉
While I think it is very nice of her to visit the area, I personally think that she should avoid Pk and Afg issues as they are very touchy and should be handled by people who are VERY well versed in the areas politics, this is not meant to put her down but in such a very touchy area filled with people who probably neither know nor care who she is, she may want to back away. I know she means no harm, but this is such a delicate situation at this time bringing in bodygurads/photographers etc may not be a wise idea. Wait a few years until it is more stable then go in. Again, I am not hating on her, I just think that even the best of intentions in that area can be VERY dangerous right now.
@taylorb – yep, bad guy in star wars. and i’m not “hating” (i think that’s such a dumb expression) or whatever. palpatine had kinda hollowed cheeks, light eyes, the pics kinda look like palpatine, what can i say.
Thanks for clearing that one up St. Morticia.
Stop judging. Many other women wear black. It is not about her fashion. You should know that by now. Angie really does want to help. That is real.
@ Jane and Minstral – I highly doubt that she is forced to wear the traditional garb. I believe she does it out of respect. As much as you both hate it, the hijab is an undeniable part of the country’s history and tradtion.
Or would you prefer her to be walking around in a skin tight dress, heels and a blow out? Either way you would still be b*tching.
@ Phantom Goddess, In Pakistan it is the law for women to cover their head, which is an ancient custom (Biblical times) in which women acknowledge their inferiority to men. Your lack of knowledge about Pakistan, head covering, and mine and Mistrals comments is woeful. I have frequently complimented Jolies humanitarian work on this blog. If you tried to comprehend my comments, you would see that my “b*tching” is not directed at her.
Coup de grazia,
I did not ever say you were ‘hating’, trust me, I get accused of that left and right; I apologise if you took it that way that was NOT my intention. I was just trying to remember if that was the name of Darth Vaders boss or not, the creepy dude who ran the death star; hell with all the remakes and pre-makes etc. I can’t remember who the hell is who anymore, except JarJar Binks and that character should have been shot to death in the first 10 seconds of his part.
The Angie haters need to STFU. At least she does something with her celebrity and money, other than shopping. It’s nice that she cares about the poor and suffering in the world and uses her money and influence to try to make a difference and bring awareness to human suffering around the world. Good for her!
@taylorb – nope, i didnt figure you were calling me a hater, but was just waiting for someone else to say i’m a great big HATER, saying angelina IS a sith lord and i’m probably bffs with aniston, blah blah and blah.
agree jar jar binks should have been shot, execution style, right off the top.
What a beautiful lady inside and out. A loving partner to Brad, a loving Mom to her kids and a humantarian. She’s got it all, plus she’s a good actress. I love her!!!!
I am glad she was respectful enough to cover. Whether you agree with it or not, it is a law in Pakistan and the fact that she did cover herself even though she is a “celebrity” scores points in my book. The fact that she did cover up rather than just not go there says a lot about her character. I am glad she is willing to cover to plea for these people, because God knows they need all the help they can get.
Also, covering up is not a sign of “inferiority” to men. Please, if you are going to speak about Muslim customs, know what they are. It is for God alone.
I have a neighbor from the Khyber Pashtun region (they love the taliban there). The woman wore head coverings and a long dress that covered her arms, legs and body until her husband died. Now she and her daughters dress western. She says she hates Pakistan and will never go back. She told me her dress was the law there since the 90’s. I don’t know if its the law all over Pakistan or just in her region, but every picture I see of women in Pakistan, they’re wearing head covering. What’s weird is that apparently back in the ’60’s, women did not cover their heads there and had college educations, I read an article that had pix showing these women in college there, wearing regular clothes. How sad that things have regressed there. When Hillary goes there, she also wears a head scarf.
i think it is proper to dress conservatively when in a conservative country, especially if you are meeting with government officials. if someone came to DC to meet the president i doubt they would show up in sweatpants – well, maybe americans would because we are such slobs. and it isn’t only muslim countries – my brother in law is chinese, and when he & my sister go to visit his relatives she dresses conservatively, because in rural china women wearing tight clothing are seen as cheap. right or wrong, that’s how it is. you won’t “enlighten” the population by ignoring the local custom, you will only invite unwanted attention and appear disrespectful.
@Phantom Goddess: I agree with you! Good point.
“Also, covering up is not a sign of “inferiority” to men. Please, if you are going to speak about Muslim customs, know what they are. It is for God alone.”
Yeah, that’s what the current popular reasoning is these days. Sorry, not buying it, I know too many muslims who have told me otherwise.
btw, religious headcovering predates Islam. Jewish and Christian men wear headcoverings for various religious reasons and the Apostle Paul wrote in the book of 1 Corinthians, Chapter 11, that the head of man is Jesus, and the head of woman is man, and that women should cover their heads when praying or teaching, to show that she acknowledges the headship of men. Don’t take my word for it, look it up. Women can’t go into the Pope’s presence without a head covering, and women used to wear lace caps or mantillas in Catholic church when I was young (some still do).
@ Samantha I absolutely agree. I was just trying to comment on the fact that it was just really respectful of her.
@ Jane – I know quite a lot about Muslim countries. I studied them in college and I happen to have a BA in Religion, in which I studied Islam.
Do not assume that I am ignorant. I am also an avid reader of this blog, and I have several commentators that I love reading, and you are not one of them.
I “comprehend” what you said just fine. I just disagree. There is a difference.
I still love the fact that she is one of the few celebs that show a true and honest interest in more than red carpets, working out, vacations, and shopping.
@ orginal kate, agree that people should dress appropriately or conservatively when visiting other countries. But I will continue to think its sad that a country will compel women to dress according to its religious precepts.
Re: Phantom Goddess:
“I have several commentators that I love reading, and you are not one of them.”
Like I care. How old are you? You write as though you are extremely young, and inexperienced. How much life have you experienced in muslim countries? I said in an earlier post that I had been to two. I forgot one, I’ve been to three, and like Jolie, went to them as part of a humanitarian effort. The degrading treatment of women that I witnessed myself, as well the years of associating with muslim refugee families whom I have lived near and worked with over the past thirty years, have given me a lot more insight into the complicated world of Islam than the religious studies I did in college. btw, a muslim man we knew for years, a friend of our family, included me in his will. Not my husband or children, but me alone, a middle aged woman who believes strongly in rights for women and children. This man and I had many interesting debates about religion over the years, and he apparently didn’t find my viewpoints as offensive as you. You might want to consider whether your commments are the result of life experience or the popular viewpoint of our society today.
@ whatever. Do you want to take away our right to think…or is it just our right to speak that concerns you? 🙂
IMO, Jolie should distance herself from these ‘extraordinarily complex situations’ and just write a check. She turns as many people off as not… always has.
“have a neighbor from the Khyber Pashtun region (they love the taliban there).”
@jane16: khyber pashtun? i don’t know where that is – did you mean khyber pashto? just curious. in any case, i doubt the people who live there “love” the taliban; they are probably too terrified to speak out against them. no one “loves” being subjugated and terrorized. your neighbor certainly doesn’t sound as if she “loves” the taliban. just seems like an odd aside to make, that’s all.
Jolie has a good heart.
she’s totally preggers again
You’re right, I was just shortening the long name. Also, was not suggesting that everyone there loves the taliban, but they have a strong (& very dominating) presence there, according to my neighbor and many news sources.
@jane: It is sad that some countries compel their women to dress in a certain way but Angie isn’t there to change the customs and she couldn’t even if she wanted to. She shows respect by covering her head. When I visited Malaysia I went to see the state mosque in Kuala Lumpur and I covered my head and left my shoes outside the door. To go in there bareheaded and with shoes on would have shown an enormous lack of respect.
Angie looks so much like my sister its freaky…veiny hands and all…her lips aren’t quite as big though.
@ Cheyenne, yes agree. btw, I also have visited the mosque in Kuala Lumpur (in the late ’80’s) with my parents. We were asked to remove our shoes, which of course we did, but we weren’t asked to wear head coverings. There were a lot of tourists there, off tourist buses, Australian mostly, and none of the tourists wore the headcoverings either. We went to see it with a local family with whom we were staying.
I love Angelina, at least for drama’s sake, but y’all have to admit there is at least one pic up there in which her face is saying, “Awwww, your poor POORs. You’re so poor. My heart bleeds tiny dollar bills for you.” LOLTASTIC.
@jane16: I here where you are coming from, I really do. But there is a time and a place for making that kind of statement, and perhaps AJ felt that the focus would be taken off the issue at hand if she were to disregard/disrespect their traditional garb for women. No matter how oppressive or reprehensible it is.
Haha Kaiser, I love what she is wearing. Then again I wear mostly all black myself lol.
I adore this woman, she is beautiful, talented, has charisma for days and also has a kind heart. Kudos to her for helping to point the spotlight back onto what is happening in Pakistan.
Oh and in off topic news, Angelina’s film ‘Salt’ has been number 1 at the box office for 2 weeks now since its release in my country. Go AJ! 😀
Yay Angie. Also there is some misinformation here.
1) head covering is NOT the law in Pakistan. It is custom in certain areas. Yes, in knyber pukhtunkhwa it is. However, there are many ppl who don’t cover. When it is imposed by men, I disagree with it. However there are several women who choose it and are very educated and successful.
2) how can you assume the Taliban are popular there? The Taliban are KILLING Pashtuns in markets, police etc.
I value the opinions of all but it is so easy to forget that there are others who may not fit into neat little boxes (is not every Muslim woman is forced to cover her hair) Also shouldn’t we focus on te tragedy of what happened and what is IN people’s heads? Why is there debate over what is on people’s heads?
God bless you Angelina Jolie…
not sure which part of Pakistan she was in, but in the Punjabi state most women don’t cover their heads.
also white is the color of mourning there not black.
She wore the head covering because that issue is small in comparision to the life threatening situation that is going on in that country. As she has shown many, many times. Angelina is not a woman who will cower to any man so it’s not an issue I congratulate her for her efforts and I hope that it helps.
I am absolutely aware that many Muslim women choose to do this, and that they are convinced it is right and necessary. I am also aware that it is not the law in Pakistan (although it is in some other countries).
However, my point is that even though it is not an official rule, there are enormous pressures put on many women to wear a head covering. There are many women who do NOT want to wear head coverings in many of those countries but do it because there is an underlying menace threatening those who don’t.
They do it out of fear, because there are elements who are making women afraid. You see my point? Just because it isn’t an official law and there is the appearance of a freedom to choose, doesn’t mean a woman feels secure and safe to make the choice.
There is enormous pressure from certain elements/factions within the societies (and it can be from the family unit, outwards) for these women to cover up and no one goes punished if a woman is attacked physically or verbally threatened for not following what these people think is the appropriate way to dress.
Walking into a place of worship is different. If you choose to walk into someone’s place of worship, you need to follow what would be appropriate dress and comportment. Be a respectful visitor. But she isn’t visiting a house of worship.
How would Angelina dress if she is going to deliver aid to Katrina victims or speak to politicians in New Orleans? I think that is appropriate enough for her visits to flood-stricken Pakistan.
@Jane16 and Mistral As a Muslim Arab woman, it is getting really annoying that every time an article on this blog mentions Islam or Islamic regions, we have to go into an argument about how us Muslim women are subjugated and humiliated because of our religion and/ or female genital mutilation. I don’t care how many Muslim refugee families you’ve talked to or how widely read you are on the subject, but many of your “facts” are grossly inaccurate.
@Mistral: “I don’t have to respect every element of everyone’s culture if I disagree with the reasoning behind something they do, nor does every host nation need to respect and accept/allow every single one of the traditions and values of every immigrant community.” The fact that you used “host nation ” and “immigrant community” to describe Pakistanis in Pakistan speaks for itself. If these were Pakistanis in the US or any other country, then you would be correct in your statement.
@Jane16: “which is an ancient custom (Biblical times) in which women acknowledge their inferiority to men.” Since you claim to be a scholar of religion, I think you should already know that Biblical does not equate Islamic. Islamic ead-coverings are not limited to women and are preferable for men also, either in the form of a skullcap (mostly in Asia) or a ghutra+igal (Gulf Arab states).
“creepy, totally sexist, coverup garb” How is wearing loose clothes and a headscarf sexist? Is modesty outdated now? Don’t get me wrong: I am completely against burkas/niqabs/veils being categorized as types of Islamic dress and you need to understand that they come from Bedouin culture and tradition, not religion. It saddens me to see that a supposedly educated woman like yourself defines sexism as such. If they were as “totally sexist” as you want them to be they would not have elected a woman for Prime Minister twice.
“the Apostle Paul wrote in the book of 1 Corinthians, Chapter 11, that the head of man is Jesus, and the head of woman is man, and that women should cover their heads when praying or teaching, to show that she acknowledges the headship of men.” Seriously, jane? I hope this doesn’t come as a shock to you, but the holy Bible is not the holy book of Islam: the holy Qura’an is. While Islam reveres and holds the holy Bible in the highest esteem as one of the texts of God, its rules and laws do not apply to Muslims. Therefore, you are misinformed in your explanation of the Islamic headscarf.
“What’s weird is that apparently back in the ’60’s, women did not cover their heads there and had college educations, I read an article that had pix showing these women in college there, wearing regular clothes.” Of everything you said, the only thing that bothers me is that you call western clothes “regular”, and the fact that they embraced their cultural and traditional attire as “regressive”. I really don’t know what to say except that I am appalled by your lack of multiculturalism, especially in today’s diverse society.
I have lived in Kuwait (borders Saudi Arabia and Iraq) for most of my life, and here there is no concern about clothing whatsoever. People wear whatever they want, no matter how revealing or concealing. I have visited many Muslim countries, including the extremely secular Turkey and Azerbaijan, where women wear the headscarf even when they are encouraged by their governments and societies not to.
Believe it or not, I was not going to address your inaccuracies as we have a proverb in Arabic which states that there is no reply to the ignorant like keeping silence, but I did not want other people to assume what you’re saying as factual and be misinformed about this subject. I hope you do not take offense at my critique just like I didn’t take offense at your distorted portrayal of my culture and religion.
Btw, I am noticing that the “I have a Muslim friend/ I know a Muslim person/ I lived in a Muslim country therefore I am an expert in the topic of Islam” is the new “I have a black friend therefore I can say politically incorrect things without being racist”. I really hope it doesn’t get to that.
Anyways, my initial comment on the article was that Angelina always looks beautiful and ethereal no matter what she is wearing.
@ Carrie… She looks like the virgin mary and she knows it. LOL It may not ever be possible to have a completely serious discussion in the same forum that includes images of the self-annointed St. Angie.
Um, even when I was in Israel, to enter any church or temple…one covers their head-more than subservience to men, it was about subservience to god—-
not that I subscribe to that personally….
At this point, these ‘social orders’ are simply easy ways to maintain control over the populace-not just men over women…but the few wealthy elite over the rest of the country.
All countries and cultures have their norms that maintain order (including western countries-these norms just don’t appear draconian, so we don’t notice). The full body covering is beyond unacceptable; I look foward to the day when these ‘traditions’ are no more.
Unfortunately, in some cases, women also support their continued tradition….people get their upper hand in systems however they can, even if it means supporting an oppressive ‘norm’.
Taylor B – I don’t think it takes a diplomat’s understanding of policy to see the devastation in Pakistan. The recent flooding has killed over 1,600 people. Diseases are spreading and crops in agricultural regions have been destroyed. The magnitude of human suffering is indescribable. How much have you read about it? I am not directing that question to you specifically, Taylor B, but to all of us. How much have any of us read about this? The United Nations has said over a billion dollars in aid is needed in Pakistan. New Orleans/Katrina has Brad Pitt and Sandra Bullock; Haiti has Sean Penn and Wyclef Jean. Who in Hollywood will step up for Pakistan? Do we have such donor fatigue that no one will? Say what you will about Angelina Jolie, but she has brought visibility to an issue in very much need of it.
And I think simply covreing her hair with a scarf would have shown respect for the local culture without going for the full hjab, which strikes me more as a photo op ,ie Angie = Mother Theresa.
what a naturally beautiful woman with such sincere compassion. Brad is a lucky guy.
If covering up is NOT a sign of inferiority, why don’t men have to cover up?
Angelina Jolie is wearing what we call in Pakistan a duppata if you see the lady shes speaking to in the 2nd picture she also has a matching one to her outfit but its hanging on the side. The dupatta is part of the national dress in pakistan. It comes with all our outfits in diffrent designs and materials and is usually matched with our outfit.
You can wear it on the side of your outfit around your arms, on your head,across your chest. Women wear it on thier heads when they are in a busy public place etc, they take it off and slip it back on as they please in. Its not necessarily a hijab,its an occasional modest covering, that you can choose to use whenever.
I cant really put it into words…its not about being oppressed or becoming invisible, i guess its a bit like wearing shades outside when you dont really want to make eye contact with people.
The ladies in the 3rd picture they are wearing dupattas too. Not necessairly Hijabs.
I love celebitchy and i never usually comment but i just thought I’d put this out there 😀
@Amneh – I appreciated reading your post, your perspective was enlightening.
The only thing off-putting about Angelina’s appearance is that her hair is in a high bun and that is making her head covering look ginormously distracting – my first impression was that she’s in a grim reaper costume for halloween.
@Amneh – I agree with what you said. I thought the same thing about the posters who were acting like experts on Islam because they knows some Muslims. I’m appalled at these hateful anti-Muslims comments – it’s worse because some of the posters are educated people yet their comments are bigoted.
I agree with Angie wearing local dress while visiting Pakistan. That is what people do if they have any respect for the country they are visiting. Angie is a grown woman capable of choosing what she wants to wear. She’s wonderful for raising awareness for important issues.
Amneh, sorry you are so offended, but you have taken some of my comments completely out of context. When I was discussing the history of head covering and its ancient origins, I didn’t even remotely infer that these origins were muslim. I said very clearly that religious head covering PREDATED Islam, and mentioned its history and usage in both Judaism and Christianity. I don’t feel its a useful or dignified custom for modern times, but agree with the other posters that Angie had to wear it, I was just commenting that it is sad that in many countries women feel obligated to wear it, where previously, there was not that pressure. I have pictures of aunts and a grandma in these countries and they are not wearing head covering. You are allowed your opinion and I am allowed mine. You don’t know me, who my family are, or where they are from. My comments are based on my own life experience, and I am grateful to live in a country where I can express myself freely.
And as I don’t like dominating a thread, I am done commenting on this post.
(PS: I think you have misunderstood Mistral as well. I don’t think she was referring to Pakistan and Pakistanis as host nation. I think she was referring to Western countries with large muslim immigrant populations)
I love that she always dresses so respectfully when she goes to the middle east.
Well. Clearly, Mother Angelina, with her divinely made up eyes and camera loving, scarlet trimmed burka, is well pleased with herself.
In an appropriately humble, self effacing kind of way, of course.
The garnement is not only a sign of respect towards a country (forget about politics) but for a politician or a UN employee who wether we like it or not is always to a certain extent politically oriented and an actor of international politics by both her governement through the US and the UN, a body that function with states funds, their political orientation through vetos and sending of troops, ect.
Those States, the US State department of foreign affairs supervise in coordination with the UN Jolie’s mission with their agents in the area, since she is a US citizen and doesn’t enter that country without both countries accreditation.
The garnement used is a diplomatic tool the same way that the use of the local language is. She is a UN Godwill AMBASSADOR. She masters in the diplomatic language, garnement included because she has to compromise with all the local authorities wether she adhere or not to their policies in order to get the job done the best way as possible without creating unecessary controversies.
As an AMBASSADOR she has to direct all goodwill efferts at the ground included, get accesses to people, ect… and garnements as well as well as managing to speak the local language, being aware of the country customs is one of the tools that ease the achievement of that aim.
If she didn’t, maybe some in the governement will frown, maybe even some hardcore party will not tolerate her visit and divert the attention from her mission with unessary tension. It could have been depicted as being a political blunder.
Her choice of garnement makes her appear to the masses like one of their own, like she can be trusted and is not arrogant. DIPLOMACY at its finest.
@ Kali, You’re appalled at these hateful anti-muslim comments? I don’t see a single comment on this thread that would qualify as hateful or anti muslim. If you don’t like reading a variety of opinions then don’t blog, or find a blog that agrees with whatever you think and doesn’t allow for variety.
@Benven – If you don’t see anything hateful in the above posts, you need to read them again. There’s no reason to hate on an entire country, religion or part of the world because Angelina Jolie wears a particular outfit! Mature people can express their opinions without being disrespectful of other cultures or religions. Everyone has a right to their opinion but we’ve all agreed not to make racist or bigoted comments as part of the rules of this website.
Those poor people- what a nightmare. Godspeed Pakistan. Thanks Angie.
There’s no climate change or anything, just in case anybody was wondering…
I have to agree that saying Muslim women are forced to cover their heads is a little over the top. Yes, in places like Afghanistan and other countries this is a problem, but it is kind of a blanket statement to be anti head covering. It is a form of religious intolerance and not really in the spirit of the founding of the US.
Anyway, since we seem to be playing the I know a Muslim game, when I was in college, I had a class with a brilliant and awesome teacher with a PhD, so about as well educated as it gets. She wore her head covering of her own choice. Ironically, I was taking her class the semester of 9/11. She was horrified at that event and afterwards, her family overseas kept telling her to take off her head covering because they were afraid of retaliation and that she would be hurt. She refused.
I see nothing wrong with covering the head as part of one’s religious beliefs, but I do think it should be a personal choice.
She’s not wearing a hijab. She’s wearing a type of ethnic dress that many Hindu and Muslim women wear. I’ve seen a friend wear it, loose fitting pants and a long dress shirt. Most women wear a matching shawl or scarf with it but it’s up to them how they want to drape it. If you want to know what I’m talking about just look at what the other women in the pictures are wearing, it’s what I’m describing.
Angelina has seen other women drape the shawl on their heads so probably thought it was respectful of her to do the same. Her pants, the long dress and the shawl are all the same color so it looks like one big snuggie. lol
@ Amneh
Thank you for your comments. I have my opinions about women covering their heads, but I also realize that I am not informed – or not as much as I’d prefer to be, to voice my opinions (no offence to anyone else).
I just wanted to thank Amneh for her comment, it was insightful and appreciated.
Also, I would like to add a question. If she hadn’t worn what she did, what would the comments be?
First, I have to say that I greatly admire Angelina for all the humanitarian work she does, and she is such an inspiration. Second, has anyone ever heard the phrase, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”? Even if she personally would never cover up her head at home, she is showing respect to the culture she is in by wearing it. When my daughter was going on a tour to Spain and the agenda said they were going to visit some cathedrals and churches, I reminded her to bring sweaters to cover up her arms, because it was a sign of respect to cover up, not because she was “forced to”. Having been raised Catholic, many women still cover their heads at Mass, as a sign of respect, not subjugation. Angelina has to decide what is really the important thing to focus on, in this case the plight of the people in Pakistan and their future. I will do what I can to help them out, as we all should be.
I don’t believe in her.
Random comment: Angie looks so much like my sister…veiny hands and all….but my sister does not have the huge lips..
@ Amneh Thank you for writing such an eloquent and articulate statement.
You are a class act.
She looks like a skeleton faced scary snake in that first pic. What a terrifying image.
@ Amneh
Thanks for the info
It’s so nice to have an educated person in here.
For the ignorant ones saying she is trying to look like the Virgin Mary? Maybe you should educate yourself a little–The VM generally wears blue.
Yes she did mispronounce it. No it can’t be pronounced either way, she sounded like a moron. It’s pronounced ir-rep-er-uh-buhl. Not ir-re-pair-uh-buhl. And really, there is no excuse. She speaks publicly for a living. Making an elementary error like that speaks volumes to me. Don’t speak if you don’t know what you’re saying.
@11: Yea and as soon as she leaves, she’ll be doing exactly that for another few months before she takes another trip there to tour the poor.
I hope the people in Pakistan get better treatment than some celebrity who plays pretend for a living wandering around looking hurt and giving some money.
She just seems so fake and silly. Wearing a head covering is appropriate. Wearing all that kohl around her eyes trying to look nice among the poor people is really really insensitive and reads, “I totally care about how I look right now” instead of “I totally care about these people right now”.
Jane16, thank you for your wise and accurate comment. Probably the only one on this discussion which is worth reading. Amneh is just biased towards her own religion and she won’t admit she is forced by muslim men. She would prefer to live knowing that she has her rights while she doesn’t have at all. And, yes, we are allowed to support our comments with “I have a muslim friend” kind of argument and it’s not racist. Kali, you are extremely amusing screaming all over the place “racism, racism!” while there is any single hateful comment here. Criticism is not racism. Having different opinion is not racism at all. You should follow Benven’s advice. Anyway, Angie looks good though she is getting older, and it’s such a shame considering she was the most beautiful woman in the world. I hope she would continue to pursue her dream without wearing this horrible article of clothing.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1309931/Brad-Pitt-Angelina-Jolie-buy-spectacular-40-million-Italian-estate.html
wonder how many Pakistani’s she could have saved vs buying house numero 3…(100,000 vs 40,000,000 for a THIRD home)
she wants to raise awareness so people like us can fork over our own money? i donated 60 pounds… And i dont have several mansions already..
i really find her apalling..
I think its funny that some people are taking her to task over mispronouncing one word in an interview. She has been doing this for ten years and has visited countries with many diverse cultures and spoken on behalf of them for this whole time without offending anyone and recieving no critiscm. She does look funny though with all the black. And saying shes looking good amongst all the poor people is just condescending. I live in an African country where the poverty level is 90% and people living on $1 a day wear eyeliner and try to look good too. I doubt very much that wearing makeup when you have to cover up every other bit of your feminine self means you don’t care about the cause.
Hushe, how much of the Quran have you read? Did you know that Islam is the only Abrahamic religion to declare that women have rights that are equal to men?
You claim that Amneh is biased towards her religion when it is apparent that you’re the one holding a bias here. Let it and your lack of knowledge about Islam go and educate yourself.
Sarkozy wants to outlaw burqas (total body veil) and niqabs (only the eyes show, not hijabs, which allow the face to show. In the age of terrorism it seems a reasonable request to ask to be able to see the faces of the citizens of your country. Actually, those women seem to wearing a kalwar shameez under some type of modified khimar or chador, a type of head covering that still shows the face.
you can pronounce it either way.
and if she wore colour, people would criticize that “how can she wear colour in such devastation!” kind of thing.
ok so what groups would folks recommend donations be made to? UNHCR, Red cross? Are there any that you know of that may be working on clean water issues?
Back to the REAL issue.
This is her 4th trip to Pakistan (that we know of) in less than 10 years. If she was dressing “wrong”, I’m sure that she would have gotten feedback on it by now and corrected her outfit. Go to Merriam-webster.com to HEAR (I love that feature!) that she DID NOT mispronounce irreparable- both pronunciations are acceptable.
Threads like this are exactly why I am not religious. Further proof that all religion does is create divisiveness and discord among people. Everybody arguing about how others don’t understand their religion and how their faith is somehow superior to others’ for various reasons. Ugh. I don’t know how you people do it…I would find it exhausting.
Daisyfly, my little Islam pundit, could you explain why muslims treat women with such hostility and brutality? You can’t deny that cases such as the one with the women who was condemned to be stoning because she was viewed as “unfaithful exists. Well, this equality must be a product of propaganda or it does not reflect women situation in islamic countries.
Big props for Sarkozy who is brave enough to say “Stop” to those muslims who want to impose their outdated laws on European people and do not seem tolerant towards people of other religions.
@Hushe “she won’t admit she is forced by muslim men” Since you seem to be so misinformed about my background, allow me to enlighten you. I am an 18 year old Palestinian, and my family is relatively liberal. I have only been wearing the headscarf for a month now, and I started wearing it because I believe it will bring me closer to God. This is only my belief, and no one, not even the “muslim men” you speak of influenced my decision. It sad to see that you are so confident in your ignorance about a subject you clearly know very little about.
“She would prefer to live knowing that she has her rights while she doesn’t have at all.” Very dramatic, but fortunately untrue. What rights am I deprived of? I am going into medical school in a few weeks, and I have the full support of everyone I know. I just got my driver’s license but I prefer to use public transport to reduce my carbon footprint. I’ve traveled alone many times for volunteering or friends and my parents are the ones who always encourage me. Please inform me what I am missing.
In addition, stoning is not a form of capital punishment except in Iran. If you knew anything about the Muslim world, you’d also know that the laws of most of the countries in the Arab world are copies of the French civil law. Lawyers who want to practice in the Arab world, either study law here or in France, because the civil code is the same. I am completely against the stoning punishment and there have been many petitions organized in Kuwait in support of Sakineh.
I hope you find this comment useful in helping to alleviate your Islamophobia, because you should keep in mind what the great Coretta Scott King once said about hate: it injures the hater more than the hated.
Chris,
I agree that she need not be a diplomat, and I respect that she is trying to help, but that is such a dangerous area right now. I have no issue with her, and I admire that she tries to bring light to global problems.
As for the outfit, it is nice that she is trying to be respectful, but I can not get the Emperor from Star Wars out of my head now. 😉
“Yes she did mispronounce it. No it can’t be pronounced either way, she sounded like a moron. It’s pronounced ir-rep-er-uh-buhl. Not ir-re-pair-uh-buhl.”
@Hamm is my dream man. I pronounce it ir-re-pair-uh-buhl too. I also say ca-ri-bee-an which is where I live, rather than ca-ri-bi-an. I guess that makes me a moron.
@endoplasmic ridiculum. How would the people she tries to help benefit from her being poor? Since when is it a sin to have a lot of money? Admit it, Angelina and could give every cent she owned to charity and you’d still hate her. In your eyes she can do nothing right. Christ! Some of you people. You’d think she killed somebody the way you go on. Oh and I feel the exact same way about the loonies who hate on Aniston.
If the 18 years old (and older) people of this planet were as educated, polite and informed as Amneh, the world would be a better palce.
I choose me: No it doesn’t make you a moron because Caribbean can be pronounced either way whereas irreparable cannot and is not by educated people.
Hamm, Webster’s says either way is correct (\i-ˈre-p(ə-)rə-bəl, ˌi(r)- also ÷ˌir-(r)ə-ˈper-ə-bəl\). Where are you pulling your information from?
“Amneh is just biased towards her own religion and she won’t admit she is forced by muslim men. She would prefer to live knowing that she has her rights while she doesn’t have at all. ”
@ hushe: my god, could you be any more condescending? yes, poor stupid muslim women – so ignorant they don’t realize they are being forced into submission! i suppose there are NO educated women in the muslim world, either, and the muslim women we see in politics, law and medicine are just shams; in reality they are pregnant and tied to a stove. in a cave, of course, because that’s where all muslims live, along with the taliban, which they worship. here’s a hint: turn off fox news and get out into the world more often. your sweeping generalizations are cringe-worthy and embarassing.
Hilarious the way some of you completely miss the huge double standard here. No make that a double double standard. When foreign dignitaries, male or female, come to this country to speak, or get an award, or whatever, do we expect them to wear American style clothing??? Hell to the no! They wear whatever is normal for them and are accorded every respect. That’s the double standard. Now when male dignitaries from America or Europe go to Pakistan to throw more money at them, do they feel compelled to wear male Pakistani garb? F*&k no! They wear a suit, or whatever is normal for them when going to diaster areas, khakis, etc. There’s your double double. Since 9/11, America has thrown billions of $ at Pakistan, $30 for their military alone (and they’re still hijacking our nato trucks and selling them back to us) and we’ve given far more for this flood relief than any other nation (Hillary just announced another 500 million). Meanwhile, back in the good ol USA, we’re laying off teachers, cops and firefighters by the bushel, and our once beautiful gulf coast is going to be a wreck for god only knows how long. But hey Girlz, glad to see you can find so much pleasure in watching your fav movie star go there and dress up like a barbie doll in their costumes becuz women are expected to conform to their customs there, even though men are not, and none of them are expected to when they come here. You keep saying “she’s showing respect”; where’s the respect for her to be and dress as the person she is? Funny how tolerance is often a one-way street isn’t it? So, Girlz, when you’ve lost the rights, the dignity and the huge strides for equality that your moms, grandmas, & great-grandmas fought so hard for you to have, you can stand out in the rain, snow, & heat with your signs, like they did, and try to get it back. Good luck with that.
@Crash2GO2: Websters is wrong 🙂
@ Crash- I’d say out of her bottom or just her plain old hatred of AJ. 😆
@Benven: You might have had a point, but you lost it when you threw in ‘Girlz’.
Sorry Crash! I was really annoyed at the hypocrisy and slamming of the few posters who tried to point it out. I do think your posts are some of the finest on this site.
Amneh, you haven’t read what I have written correctly. I was not referring to Pakistani people in Pakistan as immigrants in a “host nation”. (Although Pakistan is a host nation to refugee populations from places like Afghanistan.)
Also, I did not mention female genital mutilation as an example of “Islamic” subjugation of women. FGM is practiced in certain Muslim nations in Africa, but it is a custom that predates Islam, and thus is not confined to Islamic communities. At its root, it is all about controlling a woman’s sexuality.
I only mentioned it to illustrate my point that it is OK to criticize what other people might claim is “cultural practice”. It is the best example of WHEN it is OK to tell people, “If you live in this country, you cannot practice that custom.”
Culture is not static. Why should people be barred from discussing and disagreeing with other people’s cultural practices? Debate and freedom of choice is important here in North America, and that is the only type of thing we should be encouraging other countries to embrace—the rights of citizens to debate and choose. Personally, I think discussing differences and debating is a positive thing. I don’t think it is hateful to disagree with something or someone.
You are one of many Muslim women who choose to cover your hair. You believe it is a religious duty, and that it will bring you closer to God. That’s what you believe. You have freely chosen, and that’s the key. However, there are many women who would choose not to. Pakistan is a very large and diverse country (in terms of ethnicity, class, etc.); it also happens to be a country where many women are pressured to cover up or “face consequences”. This type of pressure is on women in Afghanistan and increasingly in Iraq.
It is silly for people to make assumptions about any particular poster’s background, where they’ve lived, and who they know. It is certainly NOT a “I have a black friend” type of thing to discuss one’s contacts and observations. To say that people who know “some Muslims” or have “lived in a Muslim country” cannot comment on Islam, or certain conditions/ cultural practices in some Islamic countries, is ridiculous.
I happened to mention two particular women I know, the countries they came from, and their opinions/experiences: why is what they said discounted/not valid? Their experiences/observations don’t count? Their beliefs don’t count? Their desires don’t count? Are only the position and positive experiences of a woman like Amneh valid to any discussion on veiling?
That’s a rather interesting position.
there are people all over the internets who love to pick apart her every move, and those individuals themselves have probably never made sacrifices on the order of what she has. and she continues to have compassion for people, and put her money where her mouth is, even after being dissected. it is very admirable. so h8rs please step off.
@ benven: i agree that there is a double standard, as there is in the US, too. men can go topless, for example, women cannot. but when you are in a position of trying to help, and there is an “official” way of dressing (which the US doesn’t have), it is best to defer to your host country’s custom. she isn;t there to protest headcovering.
as for your post, i agree with crash. when you are trying to make a serious point it is best to write coherently and avoid slang/textspeak such as “girlz,” “becuz,” etc. it undermines your point, and i think you have one in there, somewhere.
Hushe said: “Daisyfly, my little Islam pundit, could you explain why muslims treat women with such hostility and brutality?”
Muslims in general don’t treat women with hostility. Patriarchal society is to blame for the hostility given to women, regardless of faith. Again, your bias is showing.
Hush said: “You can’t deny that cases such as the one with the women who was condemned to be stoning because she was viewed as “unfaithful exists.”
Why would I deny it? Iran is a totalitarian regime, despite its democratic facade. Its laws aren’t based on Islam but on, again, patriarchal norms. But hey, you seem to be on a roll here with your ignorance, so let’s keep going, shall we?
Hushe said: “Well, this equality must be a product of propaganda or it does not reflect women situation in islamic countries.”
You bring up one case and hold it up as the blanket regarding all of Islam. I could also bring up the cases of laws based on Christian principles that have punished people based on their sexuality, their dress, their beliefs. Does that mean that ALL Christians behave in such a manner, or condone it? No. But hey, you’ve got to remain consistent, right?
Hushe said: “Big props for Sarkozy who is brave enough to say “Stop” to those muslims who want to impose their outdated laws on European people and do not seem tolerant towards people of other religions.”
Islam is one of the more tolerant Abrahamic religions. It is stated in the Quran that Jews and Christians are to be welcomed and loved as brothers and sisters. They fight those who would convert them (Hello, Crusades!) because it goes against their faith to do so.
As in all faiths, people can twist words to suit their own agendas. It is up to the individual to educate themselves. You have failed in this regard, which makes me pity you.
Thanks Benvan. It irked me to read a nice, well thought out post about the gender inequality in these types of situations and then have you turn around and call us ‘Girlz’. Calling women ‘girls’ is one of my pet peeves, and then to slang it, well…
No harm, no foul.
Crash2GO2 and Camille: I’ve already admitted that I don’t care for the woman and her nonsense but mispronunciation gets under my skin in ways that only misspelling can outdo.
A really quick Google search shows that I’m not just being an ass. I’ve listened to a few other website’s pronunciation guides and they all have the first pronunciation. While the second pronunciation one might be technically correct according to one dictionary, a whole bunch of others don’t even list it as an appropriate one.
So the question here is: Do you go by one dictionary or several?
Well, I went to two – they both had both pronounciancians, but I decided the Merriam-Webster’s is the gold standard, so I posted that. But English is not my strong suit. I wasn’t looking to make a fuss – I pronounce it ir-REP-rable myself, and always did consider that the proper pronunciation. But all the brouhaha got me wondering.
To answer your question – I think both. It seems to me that the word is morphing (as words often do). The usage of the other pronounciation has become so common that dictionaries are now adding it as correct. Whether or not THEY are correct in doing so is a whole ‘nother ball of wax.
And yet using the word ‘retard’ as a slang word is OK. GMAFB. Sigh.
Jane 16, Benven, and Hushe–Thank you for not being afraid to question sexist practices. Some people remain silent about gender issues in fear of being called a racist or xenophobe, which is really just another defense mechanism.
Further, the experience of one member of a social group does not represent the experiences of all members.
Therefore, Amneh, just because you are Islamic does not mean you are an expert on Islam or the values and traditions that take place in all Islamic societies. Sorry if that’s not “multicultural” enough for you.
I’m a big fans of jolie. She is beautiful and has great attitude. Love u Jolie.