- Contestants of the Miss Peru 2018 competition took a moment to shed light on an important issue.
- Rather than share their measurements, they shared facts about gender violence.
- The organizer of the event kept the swimsuit segment not to objectify the women, but to show that everyone deserves respect no matter what they wear.
Camila Canicoba of the Miss Peru 2018 beauty pageant gave the judges 2,202 as the measurement for her bust, waist, and hips. But that number doesn't represent any part of her body — rather, it represents the cases of femicide reported in her country over the last nine years.
Other contestants in the Miss Peru pageant gave similar numbers in lieu of their measurements, in order to shed a light on women's rights and gender violence issues in Peru. While viewers may have seen this as an act of defiance, the contestants had the full support of the pageant organizer. In fact, the organizers of the competition dedicated the entire event to gender-based violence, according to BuzzFeed.
"Everyone who does not denounce and everyone who does not do something to stop this is an accomplice," Jessica Newton, the pageant's organizer and a former beauty queen told BuzzFeed.
The show not only denounced gender violence, but continued to remind viewers of the harsh reality of this issue throughout the show. During the bathing suit portion of the show, there were even newspaper clippings of well-known female murder and assault cases displayed.
Although this segment is often considered objectifying, Newton defended it's inclusion in this year's pageant as a chance to show that women deserve respect no matter their clothing choices.
"Women can walk out naked if they want to. Naked. It’s a personal decision," Newton said. "If I walk out in a bathing suit I am just as decent as a woman who walks out in an evening dress."
During the final segment of the show, the contestants answered what laws they would change to combat femicides, or murders of women because of their gender.
Pageants have a reputation for placing unrealistic beauty standards on contestants and, in some unfortunate cases, valuing weight more than other relevant factors. But the fact that these women used their platform to help others is more inspiring than anyone's looks or measurements.
You can watch the complete show below.
Read the original article on INSIDER. Copyright 2017.Follow INSIDER on Facebook.
Follow INSIDER on Twitter.ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufonyjscCuq7JloJa0pq3NrWScp56psrTAwKerrGWnpLqmutJmqaKfmKnAbrXNrKuemZRivKd5zJ6YrK2imrqmutOsZGtoYWx6cnw%3D