Two of the winners resigned, alleging mental health problems and abuse, from the organization

BarcelonaThe toxic and destructive dynamics that beauty pageant contestants have traditionally suffered in silence have been brought out of the dark forever this week thanks to a global scandal orchestrated in the United States of America, a country that has specifically played a very prominent role in this type of crime. . Beauty pageants because, among other reasons, it is the home country of Miss Universe. However, this time it was not a release worldwide The beauty contest that was controversial but it was his two sisters small Miss USA and Miss Teen USA. The two American national editions of these two shows of canonical beauty saw their final editions folded in just one week. pure, which is how the winners of the title of Miss Beauty are known colloquially. First, Noelia Voigt, and a few hours later Uma Sofia Srivastava, decided to return the crown and look for a life outside these competitions, which until 2015 were wholly owned by Donald Trump!

Fortunately for young women who dream of becoming a beauty queen somewhere, the two former queens of America’s beauty standards did not go quietly away. The first to take this step was Voigt, who said goodbye eight months after her election with a statement in which she highlighted that continuing to be associated with Miss USA would have put her “physical and mental well-being” at risk. After stressing that “health is our wealth,” Voigt – 24 years old – explained that despite the regret he felt for having to leave, his “hope” is to “continue to inspire others to stand firm” and “always give priority to mentality.” As for the reasons for his departure, he also added that within the Miss USA organization “there is a toxic work environment that is, at best, poor management, and at worst, intimidation and harassment.” Voigt also asked his fans to “never be afraid of what the future holds.” , even if the outlook is uncertain,” suggesting that the company may be making his imminent future very difficult for him.

Noelia Voigt, Miss USA, who resigned

After his resignation from the media, the news took an unexpected turn when the copy queen Teen – As if it were necessary to present a more youthful version of the standard competition… – He followed in Voigt’s footsteps by walking, not silently. Uma Sofia Srivastava, 17, left the company after six months in the position, claiming that her “personal values ​​were no longer fully aligned with the direction of the organization.” When she abdicated, the Queen said: “I never imagined that my reign would end this way.” “At the end of the day, I’m very lucky to have had the privilege of living this experience, but this is just a chapter. I know my life story is going to be truly amazing,” she said before pointing out. That now she only thinks about going to university and that he will not leave aside the NGOs he worked with as king Teen. As if the bluster wasn’t enough, Srivastava concluded his farewell with a phrase from Nietzsche that sounded terrible coming from someone who had seen the world of errors from the inside: “There are no beautiful surfaces without terrible depth.”

encrypted message

And if all that hasn’t already generated enough comments, some netizens have also pointed out that joining the first letter of the first eleven sentences of Voigt’s farewell text on Instagram creates the phrase “I am silent” -I am silent, in Catalan -, which gave more wings to the difficult situation that these two women had to go through during the two festivals. It is clear that there were not a few who scheduled these two journeys that could have been agreed upon in advance so soon, Which can’t be ruled out and is completely understandable, because if you have to defend yourself against a powerful company like the one running the contest, it’s best to at least have an ally and the media interested in your situation.

What no one took for granted was the appearance of their mothers, who interviewed the upcoming Good morning America To talk about the tragedies their daughters have gone through since they were chosen as Miss. The reason is that the heroes of this story cannot speak, because they are linked to the organization by secret contracts. “Their dream job has turned into a nightmare,” Barbara Srivastava said. “We could not continue this farce. The girls decided to resign and give up their life’s dream: the crown, the national title.” Next to him sat Jacqueline Voigt, who did not want to clarify whether…I am silent“His daughter was intentional or accidental.

Srivastava, winner of Miss Teen USA

During the Brave Moms appearance, which could be seen as a legal strike by the two queens to combat the brutal non-disclosure agreements they had to sign in order to run for the crown, Srivastava explained that over the months that the two young women had gone through while the beauty queens had been subjected to “mistreatment, abuse, intimidation and besieging.” To exemplify the treatment she received from the organization, Voigt explained how Miss USA neglected her duty of protection one day when her daughter went to participate in a parade in Sarasota, Florida, and was left alone in the car in which she was traveling. A man got up and asked her: Do you like big men who have money? The mother, who was with her that day, says she had to take care of her because she was “very nervous” and “very uncomfortable” after the bullying situation.

Uncertain future?

The saddest thing of all is that the person leading the company who was going to torture these two young women was a woman. Lily Rose, the executive director of Miss USA, is the undisputed star of Noelia Voigt’s resignation letter, which was obtained and reported exclusively by CNN. Voigt had noted that “[Rose està] Actively building a culture of fear and control that is the antithesis of female empowerment and is unsafe for future female owners and employees.” Regarding the car facts, Rose allegedly sarcastically told her that the company “can’t stop people from saying things to you in public appearances.” After Voigt’s resignation, she took The former Miss USA is in her place TeenOn the other hand, it remains empty, because the teenage viceroy did not accept the sorority promotion.

The person who remains in office until now is the CEO. We’ll see if it makes it to the next version. We’ll see if anything really changes, if it’s deleted before the next release. However, in this kind of patriarchal underworld where nothing ever seems to happen because they possess all the ancestral power and all the privileges, a small movement bearing their name can eventually set off a chain reaction that leads to the downfall of everything. If not, let’s remember how and when the Victoria’s Secret shows ended…