Obama's Campaign Goofs On Head Scarves

Barack Obama's campaign has apologized to a Detroit woman after reneging on an offer to seat her behind Obama's podium after seeing that she and her companion were wearing head scarves.

A young Muslim woman said she and another woman were refused seats directly behind Barack Obama - and in front of TV cameras - at a Detroit rally because they wear head scarfs.

Hebba Aref said Wednesday that she and Shimaa Abdelfadeel were among 20,000 supporters who gathered to see the Democratic presidential hopeful on Monday at the Joe Louis Arena when the groups they were with were separately invited by Obama campaign volunteers to sit behind the podium. But Aref said the volunteers told members of both parties in separate discussions that women wearing hijabs, the traditional Muslim head scarves, weren't included in the invitation and couldn't sit behind the podium.

Aref, a 25-year-old lawyer, said a member of her group was told by a volunteer that she could not invite Aref because of "a sensitive political climate." Obama spokesman Bill Burton issued a statement saying such actions are "not the policy of the campaign."

"It is offensive and counter to Obama's commitment to bring Americans together and simply not the kind of campaign we run. We sincerely apologize for this behavior," the statement read.

Aref said she replied by thanking Burton, but requested Obama apologize directly to her and Abdelfadeel, as well as invitations to sit behind him at a future campaign event. Obama spokeswoman Amy Brundage said the campaign has apologized. "He needs to take the matter seriously and send a strong message against any kind of discrimination," Aref said.

The Freepers routinely photoshop head scarves and turbans onto Obama already, seems like a waste of time to "dress the stage" with non-Muslims.