Beauty pageants, we all know, are one of the more divisive forms of entertainment around.
Lots of people feel strongly that pageants are a wonderful way to give young women confidence and prepare them to handle any situation with grace—like the genteel way that this young bride handled family tension. Plenty of other folks feel like they are a relic of a less enlightened time and don’t do much for the standing of women.
To some extent, both camps might be right. Sure, there are pageant families like the Adlingtons who dedicate their whole lives to the circuit, but there are also plenty of people using beauty competitions as a platform for change.
At the moment, one woman in particular is attracting a lot of attention for using her crown as a positive force. Ashley Burnham, nee Callingbull, was crowned Mrs. Universe this week, the first Canadian and member of the First Nations to win.
The contest—not to be confused with the Miss Universe pageant, which is strictly for unmarried contestants—gave Burnham, a member of Alberta’s Enoch Cree Nation, a platform to share her feelings about the poor treatment of Canada’s indigenous people.
This year, the theme of the contest was domestic abuse and violence—an issue that affects Aboriginal women disproportionately and is often glossed over in the media. She’s particularly concerned about the high numbers of murdered and missing First Nations women, saying,
“I think that the murdered and missing subject is so crucial…Say, for example, a Caucasian woman is missing in the news, it’s a big deal, but for First Nations women we are just pushed aside because there’s so many of us missing.”
You can listen to Burnham discussing her platform further in the interview below. If this impressive story of a woman celebrating her identity and giving back to her culture touched you, please SHARE on Facebook to spread Burnham’s incredible work across the world!
