Fraternity puts on Plus-Sized Beauty Pageant at WKU.
 

In contrast to the Greek stereotypes about female beauty, one fraternity chapter goes against the grain to sponsor a "different" kind of contest at Western Kentucky University tonight.

Miss Omega pageant takes place Wednesday

First there were 24. Now there are 13, and tomorrow night there will be only one.

With about 10 weeks of intense, rigorous practices, the contestants of the inaugural Miss Omega Pageant are ready to perform a show to remember.

Miss Omega is a plus-sized pageant, sponsored by Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, which will take place Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in DUC Theater.

The Omegas decided to host a pageant for full-figured women to embrace the beauty of a woman's curves, said Montez Phillips, co-coordinator of the pageant and a Western alumnus.

There has never been anything like this at Western, said pageant coordinator Branson Holly, a graduate student from Baltimore.

At first, there were about three practices a week and contestants were required to attend practice at least once a week. As time progressed, practices became longer and more frequent.

Contestants practiced about four hours a night, six days a week.

"I'm just ready to get my life back," said contestant Jocelyn Fernandez, a Nashville senior. "This is boot camp."

Holly demanded such intense practices to ensure the longevity of Miss Omega.

"We're always pushing the envelope and trying to do something different, and this pageant is an avenue in accomplishing this," Holly said. "And the girls' energy is so serious, I can't let it not be taken seriously."

As time winds down, the creators and contestants of the Miss Omega Pageant can hardly wait.

Nashville freshman Ty Palms, a contestant, wants to show that beauty is not always about a size two, four or five.

"Beauty has no size," she said. "This pageant is showing that we are beautiful women."

- Stephanie Keene

as a plus-sized woman, i dont know if i would want to be crowned as "cutest of the fatties."

otherwise, sounds like fun. i hope you dont get too many hecklers.

you got a link to the actual article so i can pass it on?

Did they have a size cut off to begin with, like nobody smaller than a size 14 or something?

What might be plus sized in real life and what would be considered plus sized in the world of beauty pageants might be really different. Pageant girls, I think, are usually freakishly on the thin side for real life.

for real. i'd be pretty insulted if "plus-sized" meant size 8 in this context.

And, it think it might for the average pageant.

you can crown me the cutest fatty... at least I'll have a crown and still be cute! yay and congrats to the Men of Omega

This isn't an average pageant though - even if they had a regular pageant, it's still at a university, and likely to attract more normal-sized girls then the Miss USA/America crowd.

Here's the URL:
[http://media.www.wkuherald.com/media...2819348.shtml]
Brief - Diversions

I guess we will find out if they post pics with the final results.

I'm confused what average/regular is and what "plus size" is.

If by plus-size, they mean women who are not a size 1 with D-cup breasts (my guess on what the average Miss USA/America crowd is), then I don't know how I'd feel about that!

Like someone said I'd be insulted if "plus size" meant size 6-8 in this context, because I would guess that is the "average" person.

Traditional definition of plus is 14 and up, although I've seen some brands/mags include 12s.

so... the only way to break the stereotype that only thin women are beautiful is to create a new stereotype sending the message that only plus sized women are beautiful? doesn't this just separate plus sized and not plus sized women even more?

the fact is that some people find thin women attractive and some people find plus sized women attractive. the two groups will probably never meet and there is nothing wrong with having more than one standard of beauty because everyone is different and everyone likes different things. but don't try and pass it off as if you're breaking stereotypes.

Wake up, that's not going to happen - and that's not what they're trying to do.

wake up. that wasn't my main point.

then....what WAS your point?