It’s true. There are so many different directions that we can take in terms of representation and beauty standards. Imagine Miss USA 2016, Deshauna Barber from District of Columbia, in the eyes of a young black girl. The truth is, we don’t see young, black, and darker-skinned women as the standard of beauty. We’ve accepted that they will mostly appear as the angry sidekick in TV shows and movies, and that they haven’t won major and deserved awards and recognition. Hollywood has recognized it, the media is . . . getting there, and the young teen population is outraged. But the most we can do to move on from just realizing it, is being that change. Miss USA 2016 and Miss Sao Paulo 2016 are being that change (as well as all the other beautiful black women in the Miss USA competition this year).
Beauty pageants always get mixed reviews. Maybe they place too much emphasis on looks and not enough on character, maybe they give young girls the wrong idea. Regardless of what side people take, it’s evident that they care about major televised beauty pageants, as they represent one’s region, state, or nation. The contestants give each area someone to be proud of, someone to root for. That’s why having representation of minorities in beauty pageants is so important to specific races.
So when a black girl enters a beauty pageant in an attempt to represent her country, that says: It’s not just the majority that represents this country, it’s the minority too. It says that we exist, and that we’re the standard of beauty as well. And it says to a young black girl: You can do it too. And that may be something she hasn’t thought of, since there have only been a total of 9 black Miss USA winners since the pageant was started in 1952 (64 years ago, and it is held annually).
When a black girl wins that beauty pageant, we all win. We all win because it shows that our judges of beauty and our voters agree that a dark-skinned black woman who serves as a Logistics Commander in the Army and has a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Management can be beautiful as well.
Miss Sao Paulo Brazil, Sabrina Paiva, was crowned in May, and was one of two black contestants in the pageant. She is tall, dark, and has natural hair. It’s beautiful to see the crown sit perfectly in her afro. She also hopes to be the second ever black Miss Brazil, and she knows the weight that this level of representation brings. She said, “Being here is representative. I want women, girls, black children [to] see me and have inspiration. My focus is also this, to show that black culture is beautiful, our nose, our mouth and our African hair are wonderful.” The fact that she has made this her agenda shows how much she connects with those in her country who have been told that their natural features aren’t beautiful. This is especially important to young black girls growing up in Brazil, where the system is set up for them not to succeed.
Deshauna Barber, Miss USA 2016, is confidently black and beautiful, and she has what some people would call an “unconventional name.” Her answers to both questions in the final round of the Miss USA pageant nearly brought tears to my eyes. She was asked what she thought of the U.S. government integrating women into all branches of the military, and this was her response: “We are just as tough as men. As a commander of my unit, I’m powerful, I am dedicated and it is important that we recognize that gender does not limit us in the United States.” In an interview before the pageant, she said, “We can be feminine, we can be in beauty contests, we can be models. So there’s stereotypes on both sides that I feel like I’m breaking by even being here and being able to compete for Miss USA.” In a way, she has transcended the barriers that are placed in front of women who want to be in the army, and black women who want to be beauty queens as well.
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