Riverside, a restaurant and bar in Cairo’s upscale district of Zamalek, has joined a string of bars, clubs and restaurants in Egypt that have discriminated against customers based on the veil or their social status. The following is courtesy of Dr. Heba Hamed Arnaout, a well respected professor of microbiology in her 50s, who visited Riverside with her husband and two foreign friends only to be rejected because of her head scarf: “Last night my husband and I were invited by our dear American friend and his lovely German wife to enjoy together the songs of a famous Jazz singer and his band in Riverside in Zamalek. The first words said to us by the receptionist was that I was not allowed in because I’m veiled and that they serve drinks and there is live music and dancing. It was very embarrassing in front of my friends to be banned from entering anywhere in my own country because of my chosen attire (the veil). When I told the female receptionist that it should be MY choice whether I want to go in or not, she turned her back and went…
I Was Banned From Entering A Restaurant in Egypt Because Of My Veil
December 25, 2014
