Beauty Pageants

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My little sister and some of her friends were thinking of entering our state pageant for Miss Teen USA. I’m excited for her, but several of her friends(some of the ones who might enter) parents from church are disapproving. Is there anything inherently unchristian about beauty pageants, and would it bother you if your daughter entered?
 
ArdenB said:
My little sister and some of her friends were thinking of entering our state pageant for Miss Teen USA. I’m excited for her, but several of her friends(some of the ones who might enter) parents from church are disapproving. Is there anything inherently unchristian about beauty pageants, and would it bother you if your daughter entered?
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Hi,

Both of my daughters competed in the county Junior Miss program when they were in high school; that is a scholarship-oriented program with no swimsuits, etc., just talent, fitness and poise (in evening gowns and answering questions.) So, I am not totally averse to competitions of that type. “Beauty pageants” are something else again.

We know a girl who won our state Miss Teen USA pageant; it is not something I would want a child of mine involved with. First, it is associated with Donald Trump and his Miss Universe organization - yuk! There is, even in the Miss Teen USA pageant, a swimsuit competition; that right there is enough for me. To me, it’s bad enough when women over 21 participate in this kind of “meat market” that is all about one’s body; the thought of teenagers doing this (the girl we know is 15!!!) is extremely distasteful to me.

If your sister and friends want to do something along these lines…look into Junior Miss instead. It’s wholesome, there are scholarships to be won, and it can be a great experience. My two cents!
 
Beauty pageants are fine unless immodesty and sexism are inconsistent with Christian values.
 
I understand the immodesty part, but I really don’t see how they’re sexist. They have pageants for men also.
 
ArdenB said:
My little sister and some of her friends were thinking of entering our state pageant for Miss Teen USA. I’m excited for her, but several of her friends(some of the ones who might enter) parents from church are disapproving. Is there anything inherently unchristian about beauty pageants, and would it bother you if your daughter entered?
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I think that pageants have a bad name because of the ones for very young kids. I don’t know anything about Miss Teen itself, but look into it carefully before your family makes a decision.

Just curious, your sister will have to pay for clothing, makeup and entrance fees at least for the pageant, won’t she? If she looses will the cost that she puts into this be worth what she gets out? I’ve heard that some of these pageants can be very, very expensive for the girls and their families.
 
My daughters are beautiful. We once had a modeling agency interested in the middle one. BUT I want my daughters to develop the qualities about themselves that mean something. I don’t want them focused on their looks. I want them to get educated, serve their community, practice their values. IMO pageants are worthless in that endeavor, and may even damage it.

Don’t get me wrong, all girls like pretty, sparkly things, and we have our share of earrings, hair accessories, and lip gloss around here. But that is, and should be, secondary to developing the self inside.

I wouldn’t allow my children, of either sex, to be involved in pageants.
 
My daughter was in several Miss County Fair pageants when she was a teenager, She won nothing in her first pageant, 1st runner up in one, 2nd runner up in another.

She had a great time because the people in charge of the pageants trained the young women in interview techniques. This skill has been a valuable one; I’m not sure where else she would have learned it at such a young age. She did extremely well in the interviews and the extemporaneous question portions of the pageant. (Her downfall was swimsuit because she has big skater butt, out of proportion to the rest of the body! She’s also pale because of all the time spent in ice rinks instead of outside or in tanning booths getting skin cancer.)

She also made several friends that she still keeps up with, and had fun learning the various dance numbers.

In my opinion, beauty pageants should consider two points:
  1. BAN tanning! Girls (and guys) should NOT be encouraged to practice an unhealthy habit. They wouldn’t tell the contestants to go out and start smoking to stay thin, would they? Then why tell them to go out and get skin cancer? Pale is beautiful!
  2. Eliminate the swimsuit competition and instead, substitute “athletic” competition where the contestants appear wearing the outfit that they wear when pursuing the sport/fitness regimen of their choice, and instead of showing a prancy walk down the runway to shake your “assets,” they would show videos of the contestant actually doing their sport/fitness regimen… For example, a soccer player would wear the shorts, shin guards, etc., and there would be a video of the contestant playing soccer (hopefully scoring a goal or kicking a great pass) A runner would wear the shorts or bodysuit, etc., and the video would be of them running. A figure skater (my daughter) would wear a skating dress, and the video would be their program. A dancer would wear a leotard, wrap skirt, leg warmers, etc., and again, the video would be either a workout at the barre or a dance routine Take SEX out of it–look at fitness level and degree of participation in the sport/activity. (It shouldn’t just be something the contestant took up for the pageant, but it should be a life-long interest.)
 
Cat said:
  1. BAN tanning! Girls (and guys) should NOT be encouraged to practice an unhealthy habit. They wouldn’t tell the contestants to go out and start smoking to stay thin, would they? Then why tell them to go out and get skin cancer? Pale is beautiful!
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I’m not sure how they could enforce this though. Some girls are naturally tan due to their ethnicity. Others are in sports where they get a tan(even if they use SPF). A lot also use sunless tanner instead.
 
deb1 said:
I think that pageants have a bad name because of the ones for very young kids. I don’t know anything about Miss Teen itself, but look into it carefully before your family makes a decision.

Just curious, your sister will have to pay for clothing, makeup and entrance fees at least for the pageant, won’t she? If she looses will the cost that she puts into this be worth what she gets out? I’ve heard that some of these pageants can be very, very expensive for the girls and their families.
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She actually can get sponsors through selling ad space.
 
ArdenB said:
I understand the immodesty part, but I really don’t see how they’re sexist. They have pageants for men also.
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IF the pageant is sexist…**IF **the pageant is immodest…

…A pageant can be sexist to men or women. If it objectifies women or men, then it’s wrong.

The pageant your sister is entering might not be sexist. It might also not be immodest.

What bugs me is your first statement, that several of her friends’ parents disapprove. What does their opinion have to do with your sister? What about your own parents? How do they feel? How do you feel about it (besides excited of course)?

I am not a big fan of beauty pageants, but to each his own. I owuld think it would be what your parents think that matters most.
 
OutinChgoburbs said:
IF the pageant is sexist…**IF **the pageant is immodest…

…A pageant can be sexist to men or women. If it objectifies women or men, then it’s wrong.

The pageant your sister is entering might not be sexist. It might also not be immodest.

What bugs me is your first statement, that several of her friends’ parents disapprove. What does their opinion have to do with your sister? What about your own parents? How do they feel? How do you feel about it (besides excited of course)?
QUOTE]

They don’t disapprove of her entering. The disapprove of their daughters entering. I was just surpised to see the different reactions. My own parents don’t mind. They aren’t really into pageants, but they don’t see anything wrong with it. All it involves is an interview, evening gown, and swimsuit(in which each contestant gets to pick out their own).
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ArdenB said:
They don’t disapprove of her entering. The disapprove of their daughters entering. I was just surpised to see the different reactions. My own parents don’t mind. They aren’t really into pageants, but they don’t see anything wrong with it. All it involves is an interview, evening gown, and swimsuit(in which each contestant gets to pick out their own).
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Well, your parents are the ones who count. And good luck to your sister! I hope she wins first prize, or at least Miss Congeniality!
 
I’ve a family member who has been in the pageant world for years, competetion in her younger days and training girls now.

The Miss America system is the one that is about scholarships, etc. It is expesive, and getting sponsors from local businesses is smart.

The Miss USA pagent is one I know nothing about.
 
I don’t like pageants. I don’t like the swimsuit stuff or the whole meat market aspect as it has been called here.

I don’t know how much incentive stays once the swimsuit part is removed. Would people really care to enter or attend neck to toe clad contests? Well, I know they would. I’ve seen some. But at that point it starts being focused on the charm and amiability rather than the “hardware”.
 
I thought Christ’s teachings centered around being simple, humble, and poor. To love others as He loves us. To give, rather than receive.

I see none of that in beauty/scholarship pagents. I see pride and distrust instead of humility and love. I see lavishness and waste instead of reducing our footprint on this world. And most of all, I see a focus on all of the wrong things we want our girls to be focused on - beauty, useless talent (when’s the last time you saw someone use multivariate calculus for their talent?), and sexy-ism.

No, I would not let my daughters participate. I would rather see them spend time giving to others, cleaning trails, helping at church, helping around the house, volunteering. I would rather see the money go to charities, to reducing our own indebtedness, or to investing in the future instead of hair, makeup, clothing, travel.

I cannot see how pagentry and Christianity can co-exist.
 
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