Miss International Queen 2012 Is....

After Nigeria's Sahhara got screwed for the 2011 title and it exposed a problematic pattern of dark skinned women and African descended ones not being chosen as the winners for the pageant along with transpinays, in protest yours truly was going to eschew writing a post about the 2012 Miss International Queen contest as had been my blog's tradition.

The controversy over the questionable win of Thailand's Sirapassorn 'Sammy' Atthayakorn over 1st runner up Sahhara and 2nd runner up Margaret (another transpinay representing Lebanon) sparked so much online drama that the Amazing Philippine Beauties pageant organizers considered starting a rival international trans pageant in Manila in the wake of the kerfluffle and transpinays were prepping a boycott of Miss International Queen event..

But when 20 year old Kevin Balot of the Philippines became the first transpinay to win the Miss International Queen title in the nearly decade long history of the event on November 2, had to write something about the groundbreaking win that my transpinay sisters had been anxiously waiting for.  Jessika Simoes of Brazil was 1st runner up fo this year's edition of the Pattaya based event while Thailand's Panvilas Mongkol was 2nd runner up.

What's going to be interesting to observe is whether the Miss International Queen pageant continues to draw contestants in light of the fact the Miss Universe pageant system is opening its doors to transwomen in 2013 and other nations such as Brazil are starting their own national trans pageant events like the one that have existed in the States, Thailand and the Philippines. .

Congratulations Kevin for winning Miss International Queen 2012!

Is The Desire For White Skin In Thailand Negatively Impacting African Diaspora Transwomen's Chances To Win The MIQ Title?

I wrote about the controversial conclusion of the 2011 edition of the Thailand based Miss International Queen Pageant and wondered aloud about the interesting factoid that no transwoman from the African Diaspora has ever won this event in its history.

Could it be because white skin is considered desirable and beautiful in the Land Of Smiles and other countries in the Asia-Pacific rim and those prejudices for white skin are impacting the chances of darker skin beauties to win an international trans pageant with all Thai judges?  

Skin bleaching and lightening creams are not just an issue in the Caribbean, African nations and the rest of the African Diaspora, they are also an issue in the Asia-Pacific rim as well.    A survey done by marketing company Synovate discovered that 4 out of 10 women in Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea and Taiwan use a skin lightening cream.  

There is also region wide stigma, racism and negativity attached to having dark skin as well.   In Thailand as in other countries in the Asia-Pacific region, the stigma of darker skin is rooted in language.   It's not surprising as a child of the Diaspora to learn that a common Thai insult aimed at someone of lower social standing is "tua dam," or black body.  Along the same lines are "e dam" (black girl) or "dam tap pet" (black like a duck's liver). 

When you have reports of Thai women who in pursuit of that desirable white skin are disfigured because of black market skin lightening products that promise to deliver but ruin skin but lives in the process, it leads you to ponder the possibility that the distaste for darker skin is infecting the all Thai judging panels and negatively impacting the African descended and other dark skin beauties who enter the MIQ pageant.

I'd submit that the troubling pattern of no African Diaspora contestant ever winning the Miss International Queen pageant over its existence is evidence to suggest that it is probably happening.

It's also why I'm not letting this issue go in continuing to call for an international panel of judges for the 2012 and future Miss International Queen pageants.   As the Miss Universe and Miss World ciswomen pageant organizers already know, what you Thais consider beautiful for a woman doesn't have the same currency in the Middle East, the Caribbean, South America, Europe or North America. 

It's past time for the Miss International Queen judging panels, if they are going to continue to claim they are a premier international transgender pageant, to expand their beauty mindset to reflect that just as those cis pageant systems do.

It's not a surprise because of an internationally diverse judging panel, this year's Miss Universe is a statuesque woman from Angola.

It will be interesting to observe what transpires over the next year for the Miss International Queen pageant. Will they continue business as usual in the face of strong rumors that a Manila based international trans pageant may be about to kick off next year and risk getting eclipsed or will they evolve already and institute those international judging pageant that will give African Diaspora and dark skin beauties from other nations a fair chance to win?      

Can The Girls Of The African Diaspora End The Title Drought At Miss International Queen 2011?

As I mentioned in a previous post, although there have been African descended girls in the Miss International Queen pageant, there has never been a person from the African diaspora who has walked away with the crown.  Stasha Sanchez came tantalizingly close with her finish in the top three last year as the second runner up in this internationally renowned and most coveted title in the trans pageant world.

This year the 24 candidates represent 18 countries and the candidates from the African Diaspora include Sahhara, a Nigerian born UK resident who is the first ever continental African contestant in the Miss International Queen event, Brazilian Yasmin Dream and two African-American girls in 2010-11 Miss Continental titleholder Mokha Montrese and perennial Miss Continental competitor Silkie O'Hara Munro

When the pageant week starts on October 30 Thai time (today on my side of the International Date Line) and concludes with the televised final on November 4 (November 3), will 2010 queen Mini Han be placing the crown on one of their heads or will the title drought continue as the crown is placed on the coiffed head of one of the other 20 contestants?

Will let you TransGriot readers know what transpires at Miss International Queen 2011

Sahhara At Miss International Queen 2011

The 7th annual edition of the Miss International Queen pageant will start October 30 and run through November 4 in Pattaya, Thailand    It's a TransGriot tradition to keep up with the best known trans pageants such as Miss Tiffany, Miss Continental, Miss Amazing Philippine Beauties and Miss International Queen.

As the date for Miss International Queen gets closer I'm starting to find out in bits and pieces who the competitors are for the 2011 crown and interestingly enough there will be at least one contestant representing the African Diaspora. 

Stumbled across this video of Sahhara.  She was born in Nigeria and lives in the UK but explains in it why she decided to represent her birth nation at this year's pageant.

In the history of the Miss International Queen pageant although there have been African descended girls in it, there has never been a person from the African Diaspora that has won it.  Stasha Sanchez came close with her finish in the top three last year as the second runner up in this pageant..