Shudufhadzo Musida has been crowned as Miss South Africa 2020. Picture: Yolanda van der Stoep
In the midst of the craziness which has been 2020, it was reassuring to see an age-old cliché – the Miss South Africa beauty pageant – in full swing.
The person adjudged the most beautiful woman in South Africa is 24-year-old Limpopo student Shudufhadzo Musida.
She is also no airhead Barbie either, having already gained a degree in Social Sciences, majoring in philosophy, politics and economics, and is currently doing a BA Honours in International Relations.
Like many beauty queens around the globe over the years, Musida vowed to use her year-long “reign” to do good things …focusing on mental health issues rather than world peace.
Beauty pageants are an anachronistic throwback to a more patriarchal time when women were expected be sexy, good cooks and raise the children – but to have no ambitions or opinions of their own.
In South Africa, there are many men who still feel that way – witness the shocking levels of gender-based violence and rape (most perpetrators of both are men).
It is also wrong to perpetuate a belief that passes judgment on a woman based on her outward appearance.
Little girls should be raised to believe their true beauty lies in their minds and their hearts, not their bone structure.
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