The Miss America pageant has eliminated the swimsuit competition, saying it will no longer judge contestants on their appearance.
Gretchen Carlson, a former Miss America and current head of the organization's board of trustees, made the announcement on Tuesday on "Good Morning America." Miss America was founded 96 years ago in 1921 in Atlantic City, NJ. It was staged to increase tourism and to build hype around each season, women were put in the running for "The Most Beautiful Bathing Girl in America."
The latest development in the national competition will trickle down to state pageants, however, not immediately. The Miss Michigan Scholarship Pageant, which is scheduled for June 14-16 at the Frauenthal Center in Muskegon, will still have a swimsuit competition this year, according to a Miss Michigan board member.
Former Miss America winner Debbye Turner joined 13 ON YOUR SIDE to share her thoughts on the recent announcement and changes to Miss America.
"I didn't feel like [the swimsuit competition] demoralized me, or denigrated me," the 1990 winner said. "I just didn't necessarily like it—it's uncomfortable. It's uncomfortable being on stage in high heels with your legs greased up, shining, walking and trying to act graceful. It's an unnatural state of being."
"Plus, the standard for beauty—particularly at the time that I came through—was really about being thin," Turner went on to say. "I literally starved myself to get down to the the size I was suppose to be in order to compete."
"Now that the news has come out, I'm ecstatic," Turner continued. "There are a lot of young ladies out there who are talented, articulated, intelligent, articulate and passionate about social and community issues -- they have something that they can contribute to Miss America and get things from it. But for the girls who don't fit into a cookie standard of beauty, the program is available for them."
"I'm thrilled on the decision -- this will open up Miss America to a lot of deserving young women."
Debbye Turner was the Miss Missouri winner when she competed for Miss America 1990. She is now an television anchor, talk show host and veterinarian. Turner was the first Miss Missouri to be crowned Miss America, and until 2017, the only Missouri competitor to win a national title. Turner was also the third African-American national titleholder.
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April Stevens is a multi-platform producer at WZZM 13. Have a news tip? Email news@wzzm13.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter.