As a piece of clothing, it is really not that unique. There is a long tradition of women covering their heads in European Christian societies. Think of all the pictures you see of Eastern European peasant women with covered heads, or even of 1950s-60s British housewives. Catholic nuns still do cover their heads.
it is the sociology of the Hijab that is depressing, particularly its rise across the Islamic world (including places like Indonesia where it was traditionally not worn), as well as in immigrant communities in Europe that, even 10-20 years ago, were fairly secular.
If conservative Muslim women wanted to dress like Amish women, no one could possibly object - they might even say that they were preserving a traditional Western value! However, hijabis who reside in the West express their modesty in a way that flaunts traditional norms of dress. That only makes people question their willingness to assimilate, it brings attention to them... which is, actually, the opposite of modesty.
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