BEVERLY HILLS, CA - MARCH 09: Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad poses for a portrait at the 2016 Team USA Media Summit at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on March 9, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Ibtihaj Muhammad, member of the U.S Olympic team for fencing, was asked to remove her hijab for a security photo by SXSW on Saturday and then was given a credential with the wrong name.
The athlete, who has become a household name with sponsorships like Visa and MasterCard, took to her Twitter to tell her story. She tweeted, “I was just asked to remove my hijab at SXSW Registration for my ID badge.. I can’t make this stuff up #SXSW2016”
Muhammad wears her hijab for religious purposes.
She also tweeted a photo showing users that her name tag and title were both wrong: “Thennnnn I was given the wrong ID! From now on my name is Tamir & I work for Time Warner Inc”
SXSW said in a public statement: “It is not our policy that a hijab or any religious head covering be removed in order to pick up a SXSW badge. This was one volunteer who made an insensitive request and that person has been removed for the duration of the event. We are embarrassed by this and have apologized to Ibtihaj in person, and sincerely regret this incident.”
Muhammad, 30, is ranked No. 7 in the world and will be competing at this year’s Olympics in Rio.
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