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Knotted around her neck or wrapped around her shoulders, the
brightly colored scarves seem to change almost daily.
Texas resident Victoria Strout was one of millions who noticed,
and created the Instagram account @deborahbirxscarves a few
weeks after the briefings began.
Strout, who works at a footage and music licensing company, said
the account now has over 30,000 followers. She said she hopes it
provides a "brain break" for people dealing with nonstop
COVID-19 coverage, as well as a bipartisan celebration of Dr.
Birx, who has had a distinguished three-decade-long career
focused on HIV/AIDS, vaccine research, and global health.
"It's a combination of people that admire Dr. Birx and also like
scarves," Strout said. "It's kind of created its own little
community, which has been really fun and something I absolutely
didn't expect."
Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan said anyone with
such a collection of scarves had to be invested to some degree
in their esthetics.
"Some of them exude a kind of patriotism, others I think are
more playful... giving people a sense that there's a personality
behind the resumé, behind the titles."
Givhan described Birx's style as 1950's contemporary classic,
feminine and pulled-together. And she said that she stood out
because she wasn't in the typical Washington/federal uniform of
jewel tones or a suit.
"It's something that's lighthearted and can bring joy," said
Strout. "Dr. Birx is this really accomplished woman who speaks
so clearly and concisely, and so, it's really cool to see people
kind of recognize both."
(Reporting by Alicia Powell; Writing by Diane Craft; Editing by
Rosalba O'Brien)
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