Rep. Jamie Raskin Gets a Style Upgrade for His Cancer Fight with a Head Cover Gifted by E Street Band’s Steven Van Zandt
Screenshot via @jamie_raskin on Twitter.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) got a gift of style and cheer from E Street Band’s Steven Van Zandt — a head covering to wear while he battles cancer.
In late December, Raskin announced he would be undergoing chemo-immunotherapy to treat Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma, “which is a serious but curable form of cancer,” as he wrote in a statement. The Maryland congressman added that he had been advised that the treatment “causes hair loss and weight gain,” along with a quip that he was “still holding out hope for the kind that causes hair gain and weight loss.”
Since starting the treatment, Raskin has been sporting various bandannas and head coverings to cover up his hair loss, and has received words of encouragement from his colleagues on both sides of the political aisle.
Raskin can now add Little Steven to his cheering section. Van Zandt, who has lent his guitar and singing skills to Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band since the 1970s and had a memorable stint as Silvio Dante on The Sopranos, is well known for wearing bandannas when he performs.
The congressman had previously cited Van Zandt as his style inspiration, telling HuffPost last month about his bandannas, “I give all honor to Little Steven for creating this look for American men going through something.”
On Saturday, Raskin tweeted a photo of himself with a broad grin as he showed off a new head covering that he had “received from one of the greatest musicians on earth, a gift I will treasure almost as much as his song ‘I am a patriot.'”
“You are about to see a step up in my chemo head-cover fashions for the next few months,” Raskin added. “Rock on Stevie, keep spreading the light.”
The two have a mutual admiration society, with Van Zandt tweeting back at Raskin that the bandanna was a “gift…from all of us who want to thank you every day for giving us hope that there is a politician that cares about justice!”
“Here’s to a rapid complete recovery,” Van Zandt added.
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