Thursday, October 4, 2001

Your views
Letter to the Editor

Miss America Pageant does live up to its standards

As a contestant in the Miss America Pageant/Scholarship system, I was insulted by Julie Ann Matonis’ opinion column in The TCU Daily Skiff on Wednesday, Oct. 3. She implied that the pageant system does not live up to its standard of “reflect(ing) ideas about national identity, community and moral standards, as well as beauty and femininity.” I’m not quite sure why she feels the pageant is lacking in any of these areas.

The “national identity” is covered by representatives from all 50 different states and District of Columbia.

The “community” is achieved by each contestant’s bearing a crown and title of not only her personal state, but also her personal community. Every woman on the Miss America stage must win a title at her local community level in order to compete in her state pageant.

The “moral standards” of the contestants cannot really be insulted due to the fact that each contestant pursues a critical issue centered around an ethical, political or personal feeling. This year, contestants spoke about everything from learning disorders to school safety programs.

“Beauty and femininity” are obviously presented during the evening gown portion of the pageant.

Miss Matonis may think that some areas of the pageant are pointless, but every portion is part of the whole event. And at the end of the night, the girl with the most well-rounded personality wins the crown.

It is not about swimsuits and high heels. It is about giving young women an avenue by which to make a difference in their world.

— Liz Tate, freshman advertising/public relations major