Melania raises controversy again while attending an official event

US First Lady Melania Trump made a new donation to the Smithsonian Museum, represented by the dress she wore during the inauguration of her husband, President Donald Trump, as President of the United States in 2025.

The dress delivery ceremony took place at an official event held inside the National Museum of American History, where the dress was added to the dresses of a number of former first ladies.

Melania attended the occasion herself to participate in the event, which included a short ceremony, where the dress was unveiled in front of the audience. The design is distinguished by its black and white colors and its distinctive cut, and was designed by her fashion coordinator and permanent designer, Herve Pierre, who appeared while working on designing the dress in her recently released documentary entitled “Melania.”

Despite the official and cultural nature of the occasion, the event was not without controversy. Some attendees noticed that while sitting on stage, the First Lady appeared to have her eyes closed, which sparked a wave of sarcastic comments on social media, especially on the “X” platform, where one user wrote that she appeared to be asleep during the event.

This controversy coincided with criticism that some brought to the forefront regarding her previous fashion choices, especially the jacket that she wore during her visit to detained immigrant children, during her husband’s first term, which carried the phrase “I don’t care, do you care?” Critics considered that this incident was still affecting the image of its public initiatives, and they invoked the incident to express their dissatisfaction with the media spotlight on the news of the donation.

On the other hand, others saw the controversy as exaggerated, considering that the First Lady has always seemed reserved or expressionless during official occasions, and that this does not necessarily carry negative connotations, while some critics went on to direct broader criticism of her public personality and initiatives, questioning their feasibility and influence.

This event comes within the framework of a long-standing tradition that the museum has followed for more than a century, which is collecting and displaying the costumes that the First Ladies wore at the inauguration ceremonies of their presidential husbands.

This collection is considered one of the most attractive exhibitions for visitors, as it gives those interested the opportunity to learn about the evolution of the role of the First Lady over the decades, and how presidents’ wives contributed to shaping the cultural and political scene in the United States.

The current collection includes dresses worn by prominent first ladies, including Frances Cleveland, wife of President Grover Cleveland, Lou Hoover, wife of Herbert Hoover, and Jacqueline Kennedy, wife of John F. Kennedy, in addition to Laura Bush, wife of George W. Bush, Michelle Obama, wife of Barack Obama, and Jill Biden, wife of Joe Biden. The exhibition also includes more than 160 pieces of historical value, related to the First Ladies and their periods of residence in the White House.

This donation is Melania Trump’s second contribution to the museum’s exhibition, as in 2017 she presented her white off-the-shoulder dress that she wore at the inauguration ceremony during her husband’s first term, to be displayed in the permanent collection, continuing a tradition linking fashion and political and historical symbolism in the United States. About “Irish Star”