SXSW apologizes after ordering U.S. Olympic fencer to remove hijab

(Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sport)Ibtihaj Muhammad, who is poise to be the first U.S. Olympian to wear a hijab, said she was told to remove her headscarf for a security photo at the South by Southwest festival on Saturday and then was given a credential with an incorrect name.

Muhammad, who wears the hijab for religious purposes and has become a prominent U.S. athlete with sponsors such as Visa and American Airlines, tweeted the incident in disdain as she was forced to remove it.

The incident does not look good for SXSW, which prides itself on being an annual cultural showpiece in Austin, Texas. SXSW said in a public statement: "It is not our policy that a hijab or any religious head…