Pageant winners hand back titles
A Miss USA and a Miss Teen USA winner have both handed back their crowns, amid reports of bullying in the highest echelons of the beauty pageant world.
Noeila Voigt, 24, the 2023 Miss USA titleholder, became the first in the pageant’s 72-year history to voluntarily step down this week, declaring in a social media post “the importance of making decisions that feel best for you and your mental health”.
Just two days later, 17-year-old Miss Teen USA Umasofia Srivastava – formerly Miss New Jersey Teen USA – also quit, writing in a cryptic statement that her personal values “no longer fully align with the direction of the organisation”.
In her own resignation over the weekend, Miss USA’S social media director, Claudia Michelle, accused the pageant’s organisers of harassing and mistreating all three women.
She claimed she had witnessed “a decline in [Voigt’s] mental health since we first met” and “the disrespect toward [Srivastava] and her family,” suggesting that the teenage titleholder did not get enough attention on social media.
“I’ve first hand seen Noelia and Uma be unable to share about their personal advocacies on social media and be threatened by [Miss Universe Organisation] ‘social media rules and guidelines’ that I still have yet to see,” Michelle wrote in an Instagram post on May 3.
“I feel the way current management speaks about their titleholders is unprofessional and inappropriate; I disavow workplace toxicity and bullying of any kind.”
She added: “I believe Noelia and Uma’s mental health and happiness has taken a toll and I cannot remain silent about that.”
Venezuelan-american Voigt’s statement read, “Deep down I know that this is just the beginning of a new chapter for me, and my hope is that I continue to inspire others to remain steadfast, prioritise your mental health, advocate for yourself and others by using your voice, and never be afraid of what the future holds, even if it feels uncertain.”
Internet sleuths even suggested Voigt, who represented Utah at the pageant, had hidden a secret message as an acrostic in her post. One follower pointed out that the first letters of the first 11 sentences of her statement spell out “I AM SILENCED”.
The New York Post reported that there were complaints of a “toxic atmosphere” at the top levels of the organisation.
The source said Noelia “wakes up every day on pins and needles because of harassing emails [from pageant organisers]: ‘Don’t do this’, ‘Don’t do that,’ ‘Take that post down,’ Unlike that post.’ ‘You can’t speak to anybody, remember your NDA you can’t go here unless we confirm’,” they said. “It’s micromanaged to the 10th degree and harassing.”
The Post reported that the trio had strategically timed their resignations.
Miss USA Organisation said it was “troubled to hear the false accusations made by a former Miss USA employee”.