Miss America 2015

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by als463

Wow. Just wow. So, a few things. First, what kind of society are we living in that her "old" age of 24 and almost 25 is "too old" to compete in a pageant that usually has tons of college-educated women in it? I mean, some of them are in graduate school. That's pretty ageist.

They are already misogynistic, why would ageism on top of that be a big surprise? I am more and more disturbed by this whole pageant thing the older I get. Why in the world would a "scholarship" be dependent on how you look in an evening gown or bikini? What kind of crap is that? Maybe the #YesAllWomen thing really got to me, but I've become so incredibly aware of the misogyny in this country and I'm so sick of it. What kind of messages are we giving our daughters?

When Matt Lauer asks the CEO of a Fortune 5 company if she can handle being a mom and a CEO, that's BS. When we focus so strongly on what the First Lady wears to the Inauguration Ball, that's BS. When I posted pics of my graduation on my FB, the MAJORITY of the comments were about how pretty I looked. I got my MASTER'S DEGREE! The accomplishment that day was NOT how I looked.

/<end rant>

[MaryPoppins]

Originally Posted by AGDee

They are already misogynistic, why would ageism on top of that be a big surprise? I am more and more disturbed by this whole pageant thing the older I get. Why in the world would a "scholarship" be dependent on how you look in an evening gown or bikini? What kind of crap is that? Maybe the #YesAllWomen thing really got to me, but I've become so incredibly aware of the misogyny in this country and I'm so sick of it. What kind of messages are we giving our daughters?

When Matt Lauer asks the CEO of a Fortune 5 company if she can handle being a mom and a CEO, that's BS. When we focus so strongly on what the First Lady wears to the Inauguration Ball, that's BS. When I posted pics of my graduation on my FB, the MAJORITY of the comments were about how pretty I looked. I got my MASTER'S DEGREE! The accomplishment that day was NOT how I looked.

/<end rant>

This^. Yes, this^^, And this^^^. Finally, this^^^^. And in summation this ^^^^^.

And just to let you really know we feel about misogyny:

[LAblondeGPhi]

Miss California - Marina Inserra, Delta Zeta from San Diego State University

https://www.facebook.com/DeltaZetaSD...98293&filter=3

Originally Posted by AGDee

They are already misogynistic, why would ageism on top of that be a big surprise? I am more and more disturbed by this whole pageant thing the older I get. Why in the world would a "scholarship" be dependent on how you look in an evening gown or bikini? What kind of crap is that? Maybe the #YesAllWomen thing really got to me, but I've become so incredibly aware of the misogyny in this country and I'm so sick of it. What kind of messages are we giving our daughters?

First and foremost, it's a beauty pageant. It was founded that way, and it remains that. The addition of scholarships, platforms, and interviews have made it, in my opinion, a much more well-rounded organization, but it is still a beauty pageant.

I competed several years in the Miss America organization, I found it encouraging, friendly, and I can honestly say that it helped develop my public speaking and poise. My first real job out of college required a lot of public speaking and I contribute much of my ability to do that well to the MAO.

If you look at the scoring system, 60% of the scoring is based on private interview (typically a 10-minute, press-conference style interview), and talent. For most contestants, the majority of time was spent on those phases of competition.

Anyway, all this is to say that I personally started competing on a whim in college, and found my experience to be really positive. I know of dozens of accomplished, smart women who feel the same. And while the scholarship aspect may have been a nice bonus, the majority of the women I knew who competed did so because they enjoyed the competitions themselves. Many women had strong dance or music backgrounds, and this was one of the few places they could show that off in their 20s. Plenty enjoyed the glitz and the girly aspects more than anything else. And plenty just found the camaraderie and meeting new people fun. I actually think that in terms of stereotypes and misconceptions, the MAO and sororities have a lot in common.