When the term “beauty pageant” comes up, many people automatically think of the sparkly crowns, fancy dresses, and big smiles. While all of these things are key parts of a pageant, it is not all that there is to them. Originally, beauty pageants were held for entertainment where women were displayed and judged for paying audiences. The purpose of the event was to select and exhibit the “handsomest ladies in America” (Roberts). However, since the first pageant in 1854, pageants now have a much more well rounded criteria for their contestants, more than just looking pretty. Within pageants there is a large focus on building self confidence and embracing oneself. Even with the focus on personality though, many people today still believe that pageants are focused on strictly looks and objectifying women. While many articles claim that pageants are objectifying towards women, there is far more research supporting their ability to do just the opposite - empower women. 

Many pageant organizations have a key focus on empowering women. In the Miss Universe mission statement it says that their goal is to “empower women to develop the confidence they need to achieve their personal best.” Empowerment is defined as the process of becoming stronger and more confident according to the Merriam - Webster Dictionary. The Miss America mission statement also mentions their goal to “empower women across the nation.” With these and many other organizations of women with the goal of building girls’ confidence, it is easy to see there is so much more behind the contestants of beauty pageants than just their beauty. 

One of the common misconceptions about beauty pageants is that they, and all of the contestants, are superficial. When a beauty pageant comes to mind most people think of the classic competitions filled with girls competing over who looks the prettiest on the stage. They picture a young, beautiful woman walking across a stage in a long gown who proceeds to get asked a question where her answer is some variation of world peace. Although these are both portions of the competition, people tend to “assume the lack of depth that there is behind pageants” (Banet- Weiser). What people do not realize is that the women in pageants prepare for those five minutes on stage, those 2 questions, for months before the competition. There are also typically preliminary competitions held before the main competition which shows that behind a beauty pageant is “many hours of practice, rehearsal, and preparation” (Banet- Weiser), not just shopping and teeth whitening. 

In a beauty pageant, there are numerous different portions of the competition. In most pageants there is an interview, and an onstage question, as well as the talent, formal wear, and swimsuit competitions. In order for a contestant to successfully approach the pageant, she must be able to “perform highly in all aspects” (Miss Universe Website). These varying competitions not only show how well rounded a contestant is but, they also are able to help the contestants to become their personal best. Through practicing and performing on stage, whether it is walking gracefully in an evening gown or staying poised while answering questions in front of an audience, the contestants have the opportunity to gain various skills. Through practicing for interviews and doing them throughout the preliminary and final competitions the women are able to improve upon how they interview, hold their composure under pressure, and speak publicly. Pageant organizations strive to help women to gain skills that are able to be used in the professional world.

Pageant organizations, such as the Miss America Organization, also often promote the importance of receiving an education. The Miss America Organization is not only the “leading advocate for women’s education” in the nation, but also the “largest provider of scholarship assistance” (Miss America Website). Pageants find value in giving young women assistance in their studies since it allows them to further their goals and to become leaders amongst the world. Pageants also require a contestant to provide their most recent transcript when applying and submitting resumés. Most contestants that are chosen to participate in large scale pageants are often women with high levels of education and their transcripts reflect it. Even though pageants are very involved in promoting education for young women, not everyone realizes this since it is not as clear as the on stage competitions. 

The swimsuit portion of the competition is one of the largest concerns to people who are against beauty pageants. There is a concern that there are negative side effects related to this competition such as body image issues and that it could possibly promote eating disorders. People think that the swimsuit competition “forces girls to feel the need to fall under an ideal body image” (Roberts)  and that they need to be very thin in order to walk on a stage in just a bathing suit. People who view this portion of a beauty pageant and see all of the in-shape, fit bodies of the contestants may feel insecure about their own if they do not look that way. Also, with music videos such as “Pretty Hurts” by Beyonce that portray a beauty pageant in a negative way it causes the many viewers to think that portrayal of pageant contestants is how they all are. In the music video there are numerous eating disorders shown, such as eating cotton balls, that the contestants are doing in order to look their best. When pageants are portrayed in this manner at such a large scale it causes people who are not familiar with the pageant world to assume that this is how they are and what they cause. 

Many people think that pageants exploit women and sexualize them, especially young girls in pageants. With the many feminist movements happening in today’s world, pageant organizations are doing what they can to make sure that their contestants still feel confident and not exploited while competing. In response to many people fighting against the swimsuit competition of pageants, Miss Teen USA in June of 2016 decided to change the swimsuit competition to an athleisure competition. Now, the teen contestants will compete in athletic wear. This change was made to help “promote healthy living among the contestants and viewers” (USA Today). While this change made many people happy to see that pageant organizations are actively making changes to support their contestants, there are still organizations who are in favor of keeping the swimsuit competition. 

Miss Teen USA was the first organization to remove the swimsuit competition and replace it with an athleisure portion instead. Many feminist were happy with this change and hopeful that other organizations would soon follow. However, organizations such as the Miss America Organization say that the swimsuit competition is here to stay. Sam Haskell, executive chairman of the organization, says that the swimsuit competition is “part of the tradition” (Entertainment Tonight) of the Miss America Organization. The organization says that it is to “show how physically fit our contestants are” (Entertainment Tonight). The swimsuit competition is not meant to sexualize the women rather than to appreciate their high levels of fitness. 

In today’s world there are various feminist movements happening. Many feminists put a large emphasis on the basis that “we as women need to stick together” and that “there will be no progress if women are pitted against each other” (Banet- Weiser). Meaning that, if women want to gain strength in society that they need to build each other up and not tear each other apart. With beauty pageants being a competition of women with a single winner, many people assume that there is no support amongst the contestants. While in the end the pageant is a competition and each contestant wants to win, they also want to help the other contestants become the best person they can be. Throughout the months leading up to a pageant the contestants all participate in numerous events together from charity work to relay races. All of these activities bring the girls closer making them “some of the best friends” (Miss Nevada 2015) that a woman can make. The pageant organizations encourage the contestants to become friends so that during the competition they are all “excited for eachother” (Miss Universe Website) and not just focusing on themselves. 

A common goal amongst beauty pageants is to encourage self confidence. While a lot Many current state queens in the United States say how pageants are such a huge “confidence builder” and that “there is no better way to gain self confidence” (Miss Alaska 2016). A key goal of pageant organizations is to provide girls with tools to gain self confidence and be the best version of themselves. Through pageant organizations providing numerous young women the opportunity to gain many applicable skills, help with getting a good education and building their confidence it allows many young women in today’s society to be empowered and know they are able to achieve their goals. Although many people think that pageants are superficial and have negative effects on women, they are actually very focused on self-empowerment. 
