For the first time in US history, black women have won three major beauty contests. This was reported by the CNN TV channel.
Chesley Crist, 28, a North Carolina lawyer, was named Miss USA. The girl said that she seeks to change the American justice system, as well as to provide assistance to unjustly imprisoned citizens.
18-year-old Kylie Garris from Connecticut was named Miss Teen USA. In the fall of 2018, 23-year-old Nia Franklin became the winner of the Miss America 2019 pageant.
It is noted that the history of such contests in the country dates back to the 1920s, but for 50 years they were held mainly with the participation of white girls. In 1983, Vanessa Williams became the first black Miss America winner, and seven years later, African-American Carol Ann-Marie Gist was awarded the Miss USA title.
In the summer of 2018, the organizers of the Miss America beauty pageant announced that they had excluded the swimsuit runway from the program, and promised to include "women of all sizes and shapes" among the participants. The head of the competition's board of trustees, Gretchen Karlson, who won the title in 1989, said the event "will go from a show to a competition." She added that the Miss America members will also be able to wear not only evening dresses, but clothes in which they will be comfortable.
