Miss America 2010 Is A Sistah

I was flipping through my 800 plus cable channels last night and happened to tune in just in time for the semifinalists to be whittled down to the young woman who will wear the Miss America crown for 2010.

For the first time since 2004, it will be an African American woman that will do so. It's deliciously ironic it happened on the night that America's Bigot, Rush Limbaugh was one of the judges this year.

One of the other judges for this year's Miss America pageant was Vivica A. Fox, who probably canceled out Rush's foolishness.

22 year old VCU communications major Caressa Cameron. representing Virginia, won the 88 year old pageant last night which is now contested in Las Vegas. Unlike Miss USA, there's a talent portion, and she sang 'Listen' from the movie Dreamgirls..

In case you're wondering, there have been seven African-American women who have become Miss America in the 88 year history of the pageant. African-American women didn't start entering the pageant until 1970, and Vanessa Williams broke through to become the first African descended Miss America winner in 1984. Suzette Charles, the first runner up that year finished out Williams' reign after she resigned due to fallout from a nude photo scandal.

The other African American winners were Dr. Debbye Turner 1990, Marjorie Vincent 1991, Kimberly Aiken 1994, Erika Harold 2003 and Ericka Dunlap in 2004.

Congratulations to Caressa and may she have a quiet and drama free reign as Miss America 2010.

First Trans Beauty Pageant Hosted In India

There have been some recent groundbreaking events taking place for the GLBT community in India that have broken down cultural barriers.

In July the Delhi High Court decriminalized gay sex between consenting adults by declaring a colonial-era ban on homosexuality unconstitutional.

In November eunuchs won the right in a long standing campaign to be listed as 'others', distinct from males and females, on electoral rolls and voter identity cards.

In the wake of the changes in Indian society, the Indian Community Welfare Organization (ICWO), organized and hosted the first annual pageant for Indian transwomen on December 19.

The ICWO is the local organizations that works for the rights of TBLG people in Chennai and drew 120 contestants across India aged 20 to 35 to the city

Besides tiaras for the winners of the 'Miss India' title, crowns were also handed out to victorious contestants in other categories such as "Miss Beautiful Hair," "Miss Beautiful Eyes" and "Miss Beautiful Skin".

So why a pageant? ICWO Founding Secretary A.J. Hariharan told AFP, "We had a meeting of the transgender community some months ago where we discussed various events to bring community members into society,"

After rejecting several proposals including sporting events, "everyone unanimously supported the idea of a national-level beauty pageant," he said.

"We thought it would create an opportunity for the transgender community to showcase their skills, create a platform to address the problems they face - discrimination, marginalization and misconception."

The winner was Karina Shaline, a 25-year-old model from Mumbai. Romi, a 23 year old beautician from the northeastern state of Manipur, was second with local favorite and dance instructor Padmini, 25, grabbing third place.

2009 Miss International Queen Asks For Tolerance In Japan

Japanese TV personality Ai Haruna held a press conference in Tokyo December 3 in which she stated the desire for Japan to be more tolerant toward transpeople and others of diverse sexual orientations.

The 37 year old beauty was already a household name in Japan before she was crowned Miss International Queen 2009 last month in Pattaya, Thailand.

"I was surprised to see many transgender people work at hotels and restaurants with no problem in Thailand," she said.

"Japan can learn many things from other Asian nations like Thailand and the Philippines."

In Japan, people can legally change their gender on official documents but transgender people still face spoken and silent discrimination, Haruna said.

She recalled condominium owners had declined to let her rent apartments because neighbors may object.

"I was rejected five straight times," she said.

"I think Japan is behind."

Haruna said she had lived with difficulties since when she was a child.

"I was born with a very masculine sounding boy's name. But I always wanted to be a girl, always dreamed of becoming a pretty idol seen on TV."

"But for a long time life was very difficult for me," she said in a quivering voice.

"Even after I had a sex change operation at the age of 19 and had my first boyfriend, I encountered many, many obstacles that constantly made me realize I wasn't a woman."

Haruna said that she wanted to work internationally to raise awareness for sexual minorities. "I want to work for those who are troubled like me."

"I want to work in the world. And of course, I want to be married some day."

And may you be successful not only in raising awareness about transgender issues during your reign, but in your homeland as well.

Drama At The Miss Brazil Gay 2009 Pageant

One of the many reasons I love GLBT pageants is that some of the contestants will be drop dead gorgeous, the talent numbers make the cis pageants look tame by comparison, and every now and then you get some serious sore loser drama.

At this year's Miss Brazil Gay 2009 pageant, winner Ava Simoes had her wig and tiara snatched off her head by Miss Sao Paulo while doing a television interview.



I guess Miss Sao Paulo was really pissed about losing.

Talk about embarrassing for the reigning queen. But that's why you obey the first commandment of pageantry: Thou shalt secure thy wig so it won't come off.

Ai Haruna Wins 2009 Miss International Queen

The 5th Annual Miss International Queen pageant came to a successful conclusion Halloween night after a one year hiatus due to last year's Thai political crisis.

The title however, will be leaving the Land of Smiles.

Japan's Ai Haruna beat out 24 contestants from several nations competing for the coveted 2009 Miss International Queen title. The host Thais had to settle for homegirl Kangsadal Wongdusadeekul being the first runner up. Brazil's Daniela Marques was second runner up.

The 37 year old Haruna is a television personality in her homeland and also captured the Angel of Talent competition contested on October 28. Another Japanese contestant, Beni Tukishima took second place while Thai homegirl Sorawee Nattee grabbed the third place spot in the pre-pageant talent competition.

Transwomen from twelve nations and Puerto Rico took part in this year's pageant which not only garners international attention, but is treated by the Thai with the respect and seriousness they give a pageant involving ciswomen.



Congratulations to Ai Haruna, Miss International Queen 2009

The 2009 Amazing Philippines Beauty Winner Is....

Bem Bem May Razada!




The 5th annual Miss International Queen pageant is currently being contested at Tiffany's in Pattaya, Thailand as I write this with 24 contestants from around the globe vying for that increasingly prestigious crown in the trans pageant world.

But the other trans pageant that garners international attention, Amazing Philippine Beauties held its finals in Manila on October 23.







There are transgender pageants like the Queen Of Cebu one PinayTG mentioned on her blog across the Philippines. Miss Amazing Philippines in six years has become the most coveted title of them all.

It not only carries a large cash prize to the winner but a contract to work in the Amazing Philippines Show, a cabaret show similar to the trans ones done in Thailand.

Congratulations to the new Amazing Philippines Queen for 2009 and may she have an enjoyable reign.

The Miss International Queen Pageant Is Back!

After a year's absence due to political turmoil in Thailand, the 2009 edition of the Miss International Queen transgender pageant will finally take place.

The pageant has garnered international media attention in its short existence and was missed by contestants and pageant fans alike.

The cool thing about this pageant and the Miss Tiffany's Universe one, which is reserved for Thai transwomen only, is that the winners of these pageants are treated with the same respect and attention as the ciswomen who represent Thailand in the Miss Universe and Miss World competitions.

There was a kick off press conference held October 2 in Bangkok for this 5th anniversary edition of Miss International Queen, which has become a prestigious title in the trans pageant world. The winner receives $10,000 USD plus prizes, and Tiffany's management reported they received 68 applications around the world from potential contestants interested in competing in this year's edition of Miss International Queen.

It was whittled down to the 25 contestants from 15 countries who will journey to Pattaya and Tiffany's Show Theatre October 26–31 to battle for the crown

Nepali Transwoman Eager For Miss International Queen Challenge

Sudeshna Sarkar of Thaindian News wrote an interesting article about one of the 25 people who will be competing in the 2009 edition of the Miss International Queen pageant.

21 year old Sandhya Lama, is the reigning Miss Gay Nepal and is eager to walk the stage at the most prestigious transgender pageant in the world.

“I am excited,” said Sandhya, who not only is the reigning Miss Gay Nepal, she beat 54 contestants last year to win the Miss Beauty and Brain 2008 pageant title. The pageant was organized by the Blue Diamond Society, Nepal’s pioneering gay rights organization,

“I look forward to telling the world about the leaps made by the gay rights movement in Nepal. The Supreme Court has recognized us as citizens who should have the rights enjoyed by other citizens. It has also approved of same-sex marriages.

“Moreover, when a new constitution, written by the people themselves, is promulgated in May 2010, it will also include recommendations given by us.”

Sandhya's day job is working as a counselor for the Blue Diamond Society. She counsels her peers about the perils of intravenous drug use and advocating measures to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in addition to fulfilling her official duties as Miss Gay Nepal.

Looking forward to seeing if she can add the Miss International Queen title to her increasing list of pageant wins.

Vietnam's Miss Angel Pageant -A Vehicle For Change

Like most places in Asia and the Pacific Rim, Vietnam is crazy about beauty pageants.

Since being trans is a worldwide thing and there are transpeople in Vietnam, and some of those transpeople like competing in pageants as well, that means there are popular ones reserved for transpeople and gay men who are female illusionists.

Pham Thu Nga reported on the GLBT pageant phenomenon in Vietnam, and one of the increasingly popular ones is the Miss Angel pageant.

This pageant is getting an increased profile and cachet in Vietnam in just four years despite the fact that it hasn't been approved by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Department of Performing Arts.

That organization has to approve all live events in Vietnam.

Lam Thi wanted nothing more than to walk the stage at a glamorous beauty contest, but Vietnamese regulations prohibit transwomen from participating in beauty contests with ciswomen. That unfortunately limits her competition options.

So when she heard about Miss Angel. she did everything she could to compete in the 4th annual edition of this pageant and was determined to win it.

But it was more than self-interest that inspired her, she also wanted to bring greater acceptance to the Vietnamese GLBT community.

“Through such contests, I hope society will learn to keep an open mind about gays,” she said.

GLBT pageants are attracting scores of contestants like Lam Thi who say they just want to be considered normal. Though prize winnings are usually low, around US$100-300, most pageant hopefuls spend an average of $600 getting prepared for the events, according to Minh Quan, director of Miss Angel.

Miss Angel was first held in 2005 by The Gioi Thu Ba (The Third World) Ltd. and gay club Bau Troi Xanh (Blue Sky). Contestants, aged 16-24, compete in three rounds that cover evening gown, question and answer about current events and one in which they must demonstrate their knowledge about HIV/AIDS and safe sex, since the pageant's mission is to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.

The Miss Angel judges panel consists of make-up artists, psychologists and members of the Ho Chi Minh City’s AIDS Prevention Committee.

Minh Quan, 29-year-old director of The Gioi Thu Ba Ltd. and moderator of thegioithu3. com, which boasts the largest number of members of all gay-themed websites in Vietnam, said he held Vietnam’s first gay beauty contest at a hotel in Ho Chi Minh City “just for fun.”

Quan, who has come out publicly about his homosexuality, said a group of about 20 gay men competed in the first competition.

But as support grew through his website, which had 8,000 members by 2006, he decided to organize larger, more highly-publicized competitions.

“Later contests drew a lot of media attention with headlines like ‘Homosexuals vie for beauty queen title,’” Quan said.

“We received a lot of support from the public in the beginning. Many thought it was just a normal event. But, of course, there was strong opposition as well.”

This year’s Miss Angel pageant was held in June and attracted hundreds of contestants from Ho Chi Minh City and other provinces.

But it was 20-year-old Thi’s dream that came true at the 4th Miss Angel pageant.

In an interview with Thanh Nien after being crowned the queen of the contest, the native of the southwestern Tay Ninh province said she'd had breast augmentation surgery and would undergo more complicated sex-related surgery in the near future.

Like beauty queens in any other pageant, the 4th Miss Angel said she would use her position to carry out charity work.

“I will launch an awareness campaign calling on homosexuals to have safe sex to prevent AIDS.”

Minh Quan is now also training contestants for the next Miss Angel Contest as well as the Prince Style for lesbians and drag kings. Quan said his biggest wish was that gay pageants would one day be officially licensed so they can expand and attract larger sponsorships.

Quan added that he wanted to organize a contest for transsexuals next year and said that he longed for the day that the gay community would have the full acceptance of the rest of Vietnamese society.

That's a wish GLBT people all over the world fervently hope will come true as well.

Miss Continental 2010 Is....

The Miss Continental Pageant is held every Labor Day weekend in Chicago and is one of the premier transgender pageants in the United States.

Y'all know I love watching pageants, but with all the stuff going on in my own life and breaking news last month I just realized I didn't do my annual post to tell you loyal TransGriot readers who won.

Well, 33 contestants hit the stage at the Park West Theater for the 30th annual edition of the Miss Continental pageant wondering if 2008-2009 queen Tulsi would be crowning them as her successor.

It's serious business, peeps. This pageant is not only the most coveted title in the trans pageant world, it comes with a $7,000 cash prize and 35 guaranteed performance bookings.

As usual, it was a hard fought couple of nights and the judges, which included my Houston homegirl and 1999 Miss Continental queen Tommie Ross had a tough task in selecting this year's winner.

But after the talent, evening gown and Q and A was done and the judges scores were tabulated, we finally arrived at the moment the Miss Continental Pageant world, all the peeps who participate in the pageant world and interested parties were waiting for--who would be the new Miss Continental queen for 2009-2010?

The envelope please.

The winner is...Armani Stevens!



The Florida based Armani has been trying for a decade to win this coveted crown. Armani was fourth runner up in 1998 and was an agonizingly close second runner up in 2002.



She finally got it with a talent number echoing the late Michael Jackson.




Her win is a testament to having the determination and persistence to achieve a goal.

I've been observing the pageant since the late 90's, and I can only imagine how frustrating at times it's been for her.

I'm happy that she's finally achieved that personal Holy Grail and is now Miss Continental 2009-2010.

Congratulations Armani. It's been a long time coming, and may your reign be a personally satisfying and successful one as well.

Rachel's Right

Miss USA Rachel Smith has incensed some people by inadvertanly dissing current CBS anchor Katie Couric.

During a recent Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network event last week in New York, when Smith was asked about her future career aspirations she expressed her desire to get into journalism. FYI for your Rachel bashers, she interned last summer in Chicago at Harpo Productions and graduated magne cum laude from Belmont College with a degree in journalism.

She's quoted by the New York Daily News as saying, "I always wanted to be a reporter — maybe some TV. Who knows? Some serious news — but some modeling, too. I just don't want to end up like Katie Couric. I want people to take me seriously."

In response, Couric's rep later told the Daily News: "If she continues to offer such profound insight, she will not have to worry about anyone taking her seriously."

For the folks who are attacking Rachel, if they took a monent to actually think about what the sistah's saying, she's right. Katie Couric is one of the reasons I gave up watching CBS News. I watched her the first week after she took over as news anchor and was sadly disappointed about the direction that the newscast took with her in the anchor chair.

CBS, the network home of Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite, and once was the gold standard in terms of broadcast journalism surrendered to the right wing. The network that once had the cojones to call out Joseph McCarthy during the height of the red-baiting McCarthy era, have its news anchor call Vietnam 'unwinnable' caved and fired Dan Rather when the right-wingers screamed about a 60 Minutes report that dared to ask the question that many of us had on our minds long before the 2004 election.

Where was George W. Bush during the last 18 months of his National Guard service?

I noticed that once again, most of Rachel's critics are white and are comparing her to the recent Miss Teen South Carolina who botched her question. Rachel ain't her.

In our community, Black girls are taught from birth that beauty fades. It's drilled into Black girls to rely more on their brains than a beautiful exterior and a pretty face to carry you through life.

For those who choose to model or enter beauty pageants, they are used as springboards for other careers. There's a former Miss America you may have heard of named Vanessa Williams who's conquered Hollywood, the music business and television. 1977 Miss Universe Janelle Commissiong runs a successful business in Trinidad. Before B. Smith took the culinary world by storm she was an Ebony Fashion Fair model. I doubt that anyone considers Tyra Banks a joke these days either.

Beauty queens aren't taken seriously? Just ask a former Miss Black Tennessee who's now running a media empire worth billions. What's her name again?

Miss Continental 2008

For some people, Labor Day means a last chance to relax, chill out, chow down on some barbecue and enjoy the last days of summer. It means seeing the Jerry Lewis telethon on TV. But for peeps involved in the pageant community, Labor Day means it's time to roll into Chicago for the Miss Continental Pageant. It's one I've always wanted to attend for years, and this year's pageant was held September 2 and 3 in Chicago's Park West Theatre.

The winner was Necole Luv Dupree. The 2007-2008 first alternate was Armani, with Alexis Gabrielle Sherrington as second alternate. Necole has a long list of pageant titles to her credit and was first alternate in last year's Miss Continental Pageant.

The Miss Continental Pageant is considered the creme de la creme of the transgender pageant world. It got its start in 1980, when Jim Flint, the owner of Chicago's Baton Show Lounge organized a pageant for female illusionists who couldn't compete in the Miss Gay USofA or Miss Gay America systems because they banned the use of female hormones, silicone injections below the neck or breast implants. Ironically, its first winner, Chilli Pepper was a classic drag artist, but over time transwomen came to dominate this system.

Unlike the mainstream Miss Universe or Miss America systems, it didn't take sistahs long to make their marks in this pageant world. In 1982 Tiffany Arieagus became the first African-American winner of the Miss Continental title. In fact, Necole is the ninth sistah to win the Miss Continental pageant and the third in a row since 2005-06. Other African-American winners have been Lakeisha Lucky, Cezanne, Paris Frantz, Tasha Long, Tommie Ross, Domanique Shappelle, and last year's winner Victoria LePaige, the first Chicago native to win the title.

Twenty-seven years later, the pageant has grown into a system that conducts preliminary contests across the United States, in Canada (Toronto) and Puerto Rico (San Juan). The Miss Continental title is considered a crowning achievement for anyone who's in the pageant world. Some legendary names have won this title that include my fellow Texan Erica Andrews, fellow Houstonian Tommie Ross and Domanique Shappelle.

So all hail the new queen of the Miss Continental world for 2007-08, Necole Love Dupree.

Queen of Nations Pageant

On July 27 eight contestants ranging in age from 19 to 26 years old representing Angola, India, East Africa, Japan, Panama, The United Kingdom, Mauritius, and two from the Philippines competed in the first annual Tranny Queen Of the World 'Queen of Nations' pageant held at London's Bloomsbury Theatre.



The contestants in the inaugural pageant were either current or former pageant titleholders, 1st-5th alternates, runner-ups, or prestigious award winners in pageants in their towns, regions or country in the preceding two years.

The pageant has some lofty goals. This pageant is not as the TQW organizers put it a 'one day glitz and glamour event'. The winner wil spend her reign doing a lot of charity work. The Queen of Nations organizers are planning to hold charity fund raising events for underprivileged t-girls in countries who unfortunately face discrimination and prejudice every day.

The TQW organizers also wish to start a development program in conjunction with other charity organizations that helps t-girls quit prostitution and escorting.

In addition to those goals as listed in their mission statement, the Queen of Nations pageant wishes to campaign against the negative views of transgender women as sex objects, and give beautiful, talented young transwomen a platform to express themselves as beautiful, intelligent, and creative individuals. Another goal is to celebrate the beauty, femininity and creativity of transgender women.

The TQW pageant organizers want this pageant to become a platform for transgender voices to be heard. They desire to promote acceptance, appreciation and respect for who we are. TQW also wishes for transwomen to be seen as positive examples for women all around the world and encourage transkids to be their true selves.

The TQW organizers are already at work searching for contestants and planning the 2008 pageant.

The winner of the inaugural 2007 Miss Queen of Nations title was Amanda De Leon, one of the two contestants representing the Philippines. Her thoughts are shared by transwomen all over the world when she stated, "I dream of a time and place where women like me would be accepted, respected and treated with fairness by the rest of humanity."

Let's hope that day comes sooner rather than later.

Janelle Commissiong

On this date 30 years ago I was in front of the TV one hot summer night watching the Miss Universe Pageant. Little did I know that I was watching history being made by a girl from Trinidad.

During this 26th Miss Universe pageant being held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, then 24 year old Janelle Commissiong became the first woman of African descent to break through and win the Miss Universe crown. Even though she was from Trinidad, we African-Americans were just as proud of her as the Trinis, who issued three postage stamps in her honor and gave her the Trinity Cross, Trinidad's highest honor in celebration of her victory. Janelle ended up gracing the cover of Jet magazine and we felt connected to her not only because of our shared African ancestry but because she spent ten years living in New York before she returned home in 1976.

When her reign was over she moved on with her life. She got married to Brian Bowen, the founder of Bowen Marine, a successful Trinidad based boat building business. When he was killed in a November 1989 accident she took over running the business. Bowen Marine sells them not only across the Caribbean, but in the US and Europe as well. She started a cosmetics line in 1997 and has gotten married a second time to publishing executive Alwin Chow. She is stepmother to a 13 year old daughter named Sasha.

It took another twenty-one years before another Trini, statuesque Wendy Fitzwilliam won Miss Universe and became the third Black woman to win the crown. Janelle Commissiong Bowen Chow has not only become more beautiful over time, but has reinforced the old saying that true beauty is inside, not outside.

The Miss Black America Pageant

As I mentioned last month I'm a pageant fanatic. My love for them also extends to an event that was 'must see TV' when I was growing up, the Miss Black America Pageant.

The pageant was created by J. Morris Anderson as a protest noting the dearth of African-American contestants in the Miss America pageant. The first one was held on August 17, 1968 and went national the next year with contestants from 42 states participating. A decade before Vanessa Williams broke through and won Miss America, sistahs were showing the world their grace, beauty, intelligence and talent on the Miss Black America stage. Many Miss Black America contestants have gone on to greater success in other arenas, such as Oprah Winfrey, Kathleen Bradley, T'Keyah Crystal Keymah, BernNadette Stanis and CeCe Peniston. The 1969 pageant, held at Madison Square Garden served as the venue for the Jackson 5's first national television performance.

I also love the Oath of Positivity that all Miss Black America contestants take that was also penned by pageant founder J. Morris Anderson:

My physical appearance will always reveal my positive mental attitude toward life.

My head held high will indicate the mental and spiritual strength that lives within me.

My straight, cheerful manner of walking will exemplify the positive direction my life has taken.

My eloquent manner of talking will always relate the positive mental, spiritual and physical forces that reside within me.

My illustrious smile will always express the pleasure I receive from living.

The positive look in my eyes will always indicate the self confidence and positive spirits inside me.

THEREFORE:
I CAN perform any task;
I CAN sell any product;
I CAN succeed in any job;
I CAN cause any relationship to thrive;
I CAN overcome any obstacle;
I CAN accomplish any objective.
I AM a positive mental, spiritual and physical person.
I AM spiritually capable of succeeding.
I CAN successfully compete on any mental level;
I WILL succeed on any physical level of activity in which I engage.

It was also great for kids of my generation to see the women that they grew up with recognized for their beauty and talent just like the white women whose images we were bombarded with on a daily basis.

The pageant was sorely needed in an era where you still had some Black parents who idolized white standards of beauty. Some forced their kids to walk around with clothespins constricting their noses in an attempt to get the 'narrow' white nose instead of our broad African ones. Too many of us growing up heard the comments of our elders and our peeps in which dark-skinned people were shunned and light skinned people with 'good' hair were the beauty gold standard.

The pageant helps remind all of us that all Black women are beautiful, no matter whether our skin color is vanilla creme light or ebony dark.

Miss Universe 2007 Wrapup

I thoroughly enjoyed the Miss Universe broadcast last night. While I was disappointed that Miss USA Rachel Smith didn't win, it was nice to see Miss Japan Riyo Mori break through and win the Miss Universe crown. It's the first time since 1959 that the delegate from the Land of the Rising Sun has won the title.

I was also surprised and pleased to see Miss Angola Micaela Reis and Miss Tanzania Flaviana Matata make it to the semifinal rounds. I didn't think the judges would be feeling Flaviana's shaved head but her height and confidence helped her work the look. Miss Angola is also a tall and stunning looking woman. The evening gown competition is where she fell off scorewise and out of the competition.

Speaking of falling, I believe that the fall cost Rachel the crown. She was on track to probably win it up until that point. She had things lining up for her. No Miss Puerto Rico, and even if she had made it, Miss Puerto Rico would have had to battle the fact that there have never been back-to-back winners from the same country in the history of the pageant. Her other major rival in Miss Venezuela, the betting favorite going into the finals to me didn't have that wow factor that I've observed in other former Miss Venezuelas who have taken the Miss Universe title.

It probably didn't help that Rachel made the 5 finalists despite the fall and the homegirl from Mexico was eliminated. I'm amazed that she scored an 8.75 after that. It's why I say that she lost the competition right there. I could easily see her scoring in the 8.9-low 9 range if she hadn't.

The Mexico City home crowd booing during her interview probably didn't help either. Had she won there would've probably been a little controversy about that. I also didn't like the weak softball questions they asked the delegates.

If you want to showcase a woman's intelligence as the Miss Universe organization tells its critics and claims they're serious about that, then ask the delegates some challenging and intelligent questions. I'd also make the interview 60% of your score.

Even though Rachel won't be globetrotting for the next year as Miss Universe 2007, she still is the fourth runner up and she will continue to carry out her duties as Miss USA 2007 until she relinquishes her crown. I doubt that it will be the last time you see this sistah.