My thoughts on Beauty Pageants have evolved over the years. There was a time I lived for them, for different countries I should add, along with the Miss Universe and Miss World Contests. I don’t watch them closely anymore and in fact have no idea who won last year or the year before. I do remember the fiasco following a mix-up that saw the “wrong” girl crowned at one of the Pageants but I couldn’t tell you their names or nationality yet there was a time I knew “everything” about the Winners and Runners Up, from what they did for a living to their hobbies and what their parents thought when they decided to join the contest! In my opinion, I think the idea of pitting women against each other in a bid to pick the prettiest is ridiculous. While certain Pageants promote positive causes, the general perception is that Beauty Contests are all about Beauty as the name aptly suggests so when I heard that Miss America is cancelling their Swimsuit category, I thought it’s a step in the right direction and I commend the organisers for opting to do this. We’re at a point where we shouldn’t be judging how beautiful women are by how good they look in a Swimsuit. It’s just a way of objectifying women and that’s not what we should be doing. Plus, it subjects the girls who participate in these Pageants to immense pressure to stay a certain size. I’ve heard about contestants forced to eat half an apple a day so their tummies stay flat. That’s not healthy eating. It’s torture. Beauty Pageants around the World need to scrap the Swimsuit category too. Many women are self-conscious to begin with and to have them strutting in front of strangers, several of whom often make rude remarks about their bodies must be disconcerting. Personally, I wouldn’t do it for anything. The bigger argument though is whether we should be judging women by how good they look in or out of clothes. I don’t think so. I know Beauty Pageants offer Fashion Designers and Stylists an opportunity to showcase their creations but I also think its time to do away with segments like “Evening Wear” or “Formal Wear” and let participants wear whatever they want to these events. I also think we should drop the “Beauty” in Pageants. It’s nice that several of them incorporate talent and skill segments and often, contestants are asked about their plans to change their communities and what they intend to do to impact the world in a meaningful way. Usually, their answers have to do with saving the environment, raising awareness on infant mortality and malnutrition and I don’t see what that has to do with acing the Swimsuit Category! I’d rather they focus on skills so we have women presenting real solutions to the many challenges we face today. Let’s have Entrepreneurs, Engineers, Doctors etc competing for grants, mentoring young girls and pitching concepts and ideas to create real change. The most ingenious contestant can then be crowned!
