Ms America

A "Miss"Represented Miss America

On September 7th of 1921, the first Miss America Pageant was held in Atlantic City, New Jersey as an approach to increase tourism. Despite resistance from critics, who claimed the contest was risquÐ"©, the pageant gained almost instant success. Margaret Gorman, the first official "Miss America," became a model for the ideal American woman. As Samuel Gompers of the New York Times remarked, "She (Margaret Gorman) represents the type of womanhood America needs; strong, red-blooded, able to shoulder the responsibilities of home-making and motherhood. It is in her type that the hope of the country resides."(Gompers) Perhaps this idea of the model female American was well-received in 1921. Much has changed since then, especially for women. But does the Miss America pageant reflect these changes? Or are the women who walk across that stage every year actually degrading the females who have, and continue to sacrifice for the good of womankind?

Perhaps the answer to these questions can be found in an analysis of the so-called platforms which each woman claims to represent. Miss America 2006, Jennifer Berry, planed to "approach the underage drinking issue globally," (Berry) as her platform. But, is underage drinking really a global issue? What about the rapidly depleting ozone layer or supply of petroleum? Perhaps this critic offers an explanation as to why, "And they'd all chosen safe, traditional, non-threatening issues like asthma awareness, breast cancer awareness, and "virginity's value." Nobody had any interest in running for President, or in any creative arts not undertaken in front of a camera; nobody mentioned gay rights or civil rights as issues, or feminism for that matter" (Tomato) It is one thing to make appearances as a well known face to raise money for a cause. It is another thing to research and put one's own sweat into finding a solution to a problem, or even raising awareness. Perhaps if the women spent less time picking out the perfect gown to walk across the stage in there might be more time for these platforms they claim to feel so strongly about. One female college student remarks about the validity of her platform, "Berry said her top priority as Miss America will be fighting drunk driving, but viewers saw no presentation given nor articles written on that topic. The truth is that beautiful bodies and perfect hair take precedence over the supposed scholarly nature of Miss America. If so, then fine. Just don't call it a scholarship competition." (Kent) There is truth in Kent's statement. There are thousands of American students struggling to work their ways through college. Thousands more will be in debt until they retire trying to pay off college loans. Many of these students would prove to be brilliant assets to the future of our country if given the chance. And many of those who have struggled financially to get through college will become passionate ambassadors for issues they feel strongly about. The difference between these students and those in the pageant is; these students actually believe in the issues they take on. They are not motivated by money or fame and they do not have to look good in front of a camera to prove they are worthy enough to represent their cause. They are true role models with and inner motivation to do good. One critic remarks," Most of the competitors wanted to become lawyers, spokes models, and news anchors when they grew up; one wanted to appear on America's Most Wanted, but, she took pains to add, "not as a criminal. As the host. Of the show. Who didn't do anything bad." Another wanted to work with children, "because babies are so cute." Many of the contestants had to respond to a query on what single thing they would change about themselves if they had the opportunity, and every last one of them wanted to change something about her body. In all fairness, I'd have chosen "smaller waistline" over "good at math" in a flash at that age (and probably still would, come to think of it), but I thought beauty queens would have higher self-esteem." (Tomato) As a side note, in the last pageant a question was asked to the five finalists, "When did women get the right to vote?" Four out of the five answered incorrectly with the year 1930. And these are the women claiming to be role models for young American females. They do not even recognize the pain and suffering endured by women in order for future generations to reap the benefits and live freely. But, the quiz portion of the competition does only count for 5% of the total score, with talent claiming 20%.

So, that would make Miss America an extremely influential role model to many young women. Except, she rarely takes on the "tough" issues and she looks good in a swimsuit. Oh yes, the infamous swimsuit competition. This, of course, has a great deal to do with the representation of the women of the United States. Most women wear bikinis, have flawless skin, and can walk across a stage in heals without any excess jiggleÐ'...right? Wrong. The Miss America organization claims the swimsuit competition encourages fitness. Understandably, the young women in these competitions should be healthy. However, "fit" according to American media is a far cry from the real "healthy." Psychologist Stephen Huey discusses the issue, "A Johns Hopkins study published a few years ago found that more than half of Miss Americas since 1970 have had a Body Mass Index below 18.5, placing them in the undernourished range according to World Health Organization criteria that define BMIs between 20 and 25 as normal. The recently crowned Miss America 2003, Erika Harold, is 5 feet 5 inches and 120 pounds, giving her a BMI of just under 20.

Though Harold is hardly anorexic, she is yet another embodiment of the thin beauty ideal that Miss America and the like unremittingly promote. They do so in a country where millions of girls and women suffer from eating disorders and tens of millions of normal, healthy girls