Amena Khan

L’Oréal

Just days into her role, the British Muslim model quit L’Oréal’s campaign after right-wing media outlets published tweets from 2014 in which she criticised Israel’s war in Gaza. Amena Khan had become L’Oréal’s only hijab-wearing model to front its hair-care campaign less than a week before. Fashion bloggers and fans on Twitter had lauded L’Oréal’s inclusion of Khan, but racists and Islamophobes sent her abuse on social media.

The story was picked up by far-Right social media activists, and Khan announced her resignation over the controversy: “I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologise for the upset and hurt that they have caused.”

Khan’s 2014 tweets lamented the killing of Palestinians and the illegal occupation of Palestinian land, and praised world leaders who had spoken out against Israel.