Insomnia continues. I'm up early this morning and the Miss Universe pageant shows up in my roku feed. Was kind of suprised that they are still doing these. I remember watching them as a kid with my friends and hearing older women talk about how sexist they are and that they send little girls the wrong message that they should be judged by their looks. I started thinking about it and wondering, are beauty pageants in fact sexist?

Here's one feminist take on why they are:

Feminists have opposed beauty pageants since - well since they’ve both existed - even when there has been an argument that they are striking a blow for equality. 2020 sees the release of Misbehaviour, a film about the feminst opposition to the Miss World pageant in 1970, which saw the crowning of the first black Miss World. While pageants are certainly less objectionable when they feature a more diverse line-up, it still doesn’t sanitise the rampant sexism they represent.

Pageant organisers have tried, over the last couple of decades, to modernise. The events were dubbed ‘scholarship programs’. Some chapters ditched the swimsuit round, while last year Miss GB had a ‘no make-up round’. But no matter what is changed, the principle remains the same. Women are offering themselves up to be rubber-stamped with the approval that they are beautiful.

While women in all industries face professional hurdles, pageants are one of the only workplaces where they are required to wear ball gowns while doing so. In this annual competition, women are expected to be gorgeous, intelligent, and poised; to look good in a bikini, ace a question-and-answer segment, represent their entire nation, and walk perfectly in high heels. Meanwhile Steve Harvey, the reigning male host, automatically exceeds expectations if he manages to read out the correct winner (and was somehow rehired after fucking up his one and only job).

I guess fundementally those opposed to pageants believe they reinforce the idea that women's primary value is their looks, and that judging women on their looks is sexist and oppressive, and that it sends young girls the wrong message.

What do you think? Are pageants sexist? Or is it hypocritical to pick on pageants when there are 100 million other ways women are judged according to their looks by society?