Beauty pageants have been around forever -- Miss America was founded in 1921, Miss World in 1951 and Miss Universe and Miss USA in 1952. Not much has changed in those pageants, besides the trending hairstyles and swimsuits.
Swimsuits in general have gotten smaller and skimpier over the years, and the expectations and standards put on women’s bodies have shifted as well. Women are supposed to be skinny, but not too skinny because they should have curves, yet not too curvy because that’s “fat." They should have boobs, but not too big because that’s asking for it, but not too small because you’ll look like a 12-year-old. They should be muscular, but not really muscular because that’s intimidating and gross looking. God forbid you have stretch marks or cellulite from growing like a normal human being. It never ends. It. Never. Ends.
Around 42 percent of girls between the ages of six and nine feel that they should lose weight, and 81 percent of 10-year-olds are afraid of being “fat."
According to Pysch Central, “In 1975 most models weighed eight percent less than the average woman; today they weigh 23 percent less. Compared to the Playboy centerfolds and Miss America winners from the 1950s, at least one-quarter of present-day icons meet the weight criteria for anorexia.”
So it turns out that not only are the swimsuits getting smaller, but the women showing them off are getting smaller, too!
And the millions of women, teenagers and little girls watching these beauty pageants at home are thinking, “These women are the epitome of beauty," and then they look down at their soft stomachs or big, strong thighs and think there’s something wrong with them.
That they’re not beautiful.
That they’re ugly or fat.
In the United States alone, over 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a “clinically significant” eating disorder at some point in their life.
That means millions of people looking at their bodies and thinking that they’re not beautiful.
The Miss Universe Organization just announced that they are getting rid of the bikini portion of the Miss Teen USA pageant and are replacing it with athletic wear instead, and I am thrilled.
In this technology-controlled era, media obviously has a huge influence over those who consume it, particularly children and young adults. So, having that more easily-influenced demographic see their peers model workout clothes instead of being almost naked is a HUGE step toward promoting body positivity.
Personally, I hope that this change in the Miss Teen USA pageant will be widely accepted, and Miss USA and Miss Universe will see what a positive thing it is, and also make the change.
Concepts like a ‘summer body’ or ‘bikini body’ are really destructive for women because they feel that they constantly need to improve. Get skinnier, get a six-pack, lose the “thunder thighs," whatever, for the sake of showing off their body, when in reality, putting on a swimsuit and going to the beach is not a beauty pageant! We all just want to relax and sunbathe or surf or build a sandcastle, so why are we so obsessed with whether or not we have a flat stomach or a thigh gap?
