THE CHANGING FACE OF BEAUTY PAGEANTS
AT SOME point in every little girl’s young life, she dreamt of wearing a crown.
I was one of those girls.
The crown I wished for was not only that of a princess who stood beside her handsome prince, but the magnificent diamond-studded crown that was worn by a beauty queen.
Watching beauty pageants with my grandmother and the flamboyant uncle, who knew his Miss World from Miss Universe and who knew all the Miss South Africas, was an annual highlight.
We would sit glued to the television in awe of the poise, grace and, yes, the beauty of the contestants. Their perfect swimsuit bodies and pearly white smiles.
Back then, during the early 1980s, a girl like myself could only dream about ever being crowned Miss South Africa.
Besides the colour of my skin, there were other factors that would have prevented me from entering the beauty pageant.
During the earlier days of beauty pageantry, it was all about what the women looked like and how they carried themselves and rarely about what they actually had to say.
The standard responses to the question, “What would you do if you were to be crowned Miss SA?”, would generally be something along the lines of “Save the children and world peace”.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that, of course, but beauty queens were pretty much just that – beauty queens.
The entry requirements were mostly physical appearance-related, which was another aspect that would shatter most girls’ dreams of even entering.
One practically had to look like the models you’d find in glossy magazines of that particular period.
When the hourglass figure was the way women were meant to look, that was the beauty standard to follow. When in the ’90s tall and skinny was what was considered perfection, that was what pageant queens aspired to look like.
But besides the physical appearance, the rules for entering Miss South Africa were strict. Those included no visible tattoos or piercings, no criminal record or skeletons in your closet.
However, two of those rules restricted many women from entering.
Mothers, whether you were single moms or married, were not allowed. You could not enter if you were pregnant.
No married women were allowed to enter, either.
The Miss SA organisation is now allowing mothers and married women to enter the competition.
Over the past few years, the competition has become more inclusive.
We’ve seen women of all shapes and sizes entering. Such a refreshing change.
This year, Lehlogonolo Machaba made history when she became the first trans woman to compete in the Miss SA pageant.
With the new changes in place, the competition is now open to all women between the ages of 20 and 28.
The change comes soon after an announcement made by the Miss Universe Organisation, who are now allowing mothers and married women to enter as well.
On the topic, Josh Yugen, chief executive of Yugen Group and the national director of Miss Universe Bahrain told The National: “The Miss Universe Organisation is always the greatest and most innovative platform of its kind and now it will be more inclusive and welcoming to mothers and married women.
“For me, this is aligned with what I have been fighting for – breaking stereotypes and unlearning the stigma that the old society has forced on us from many, many decades ago.”
Andrea Meza, who was crowned Miss Universe 2020, told Insider that the rule change was long overdue.
“I honestly love that this is happening,” she said in an exclusive interview. “Just like society changes and women are now occupying leadership positions, where in the past only men could, it was about time pageants changed and opened up to women with families.
“There are a lot of women that got married young or had kids in their early twenties and they always wanted to participate in Miss Universe but couldn’t because of the rules.
“Now those women can start or boost their careers in entertainment
because of these changes.”
We got in touch with the Mrs South Africa organisation to find out what their opinion on the change was in light of the fact that in the past it was the platform where married women had the opportunity to enter such a pageant.
Mrs SA has applauded the changes Miss SA has made and explains the importance of each of the competitions.
Chief executive officer Joani Johnson notes that the decision signals yet another landmark step within the local pageant industry for celebrating women of all backgrounds, closely following Mrs South Africa’s own announcement earlier this year that it would be extending its entry requirements to include married women up to the age of 55.
“We are creating platforms for launching the female ambassadors of tomorrow, which is why representation and inclusivity is so important, and why the Miss SA changes are so significant for the industry,” she says.
“As Mrs South Africa, we are proud to also be playing a part in embracing inclusivity by shattering the stigma of ageism by giving more mature women an opportunity to enter and become a powerful voice for good.”
She explains that the two pageants will continue to complement each other, as Miss SA is open only to entrants under the age of 28, while Mrs South Africa is open to married women up to the age of 55.
“Both programmes play an important role in supporting women through different stages of their lives, and showcasing their strength, talent and determination as inspirations to us all.”
Johnson adds that as a valued women empowerment programme, Mrs South Africa is proud to walk alongside women as they rediscover themselves and actively pursue their dreams, no matter their age.
“We provide these women with coaching, skills training and networking opportunities, helping them to positively transform their lives and careers and gain confidence in their own abilities as leaders and change-makers,” she says.
South African beauty pageantry is entering new territory and we all look forward to seeing how the changes will shape the face of the competitions.