I was among the millions around the world who witnessed Miss District of Columbia USA 2017 Kára McCullough get crowned as Miss USA 2017. I must say I was excited that an intelligent, polished woman of African-American decent was bestowed with this honor. The buzz in the media that has been happening the past few days since her crowning is the fact that she was crowned in her natural curls. Also, Miss USA 2016 Deshauna Barber crowned the new queen while rocking an afro, and she did this is in memory of her mother who passed away from lung cancer.
Now, I am all for queens rocking their natural tresses, and I highly encourage it because I believe a woman’s hair regardless of its texture is her crowning glory. However, the question I pose is when will society just accept the fact that natural hair is normal hair? Yes, I said it. The secret is out. It is normal. Regardless of how society paints the picture there is nothing earth shattering about this concept. It is the hair that grows out of our scalp, and it is the way God created us. Women of color who compete in pageants should not be discouraged from wearing hair that is normal to their genetic makeup.
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It is highly offensive to say the least when I hear of individuals discouraging women from wearing their natural hair. I can recall last year when Miss District of Columbia 2016 Cierra Jackson (I still believe she should have been in the Top 10, but I digress) was told not to wear her natural hair at the Miss America 2016 Pageant. I am glad she did not listen to the naysayers and that she was true to herself and her beliefs.
Hopefully witnessing a mainstream pageant like Miss USA crown a girl with natural hair will shed light on the need for diversity in the pageantry industry. America is not just composed of blond straight hair and blue eyed women. We are a melting pot of diverse races, ethnicities, skin tones, hair textures, sizes, cultures, and religious and political belief systems.
It is time to let go of this Eurocentric standard of beauty, and create your own standard of beauty. Women are not created to be put into a box that makes you feel comfortable. For goodness sake: Let them be great!
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