The likes of Mikayla Holmgren and Halima Aden have set a new precedence for pageants. They've paved the way for all women to participate and there's no longer a cookie-cutter image of what a woman should "look like" in order to participate. Aden, a Somali Muslim participated last year setting a new bar with the allowance for her to compete wearing a burkini. I was honored to receive an interview from Aden last year and she was absolutely gracious and kind in response. Holmgren is also blazing a new trail by being the first woman with down syndrome to compete in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant. This is exactly how a pageant should be. All kinds of women being authentic in who they are so that when we have young girls looking at the TV screen to watch they may see themselves up there on stage.

 

 

 

 

 

More From 106.9 KROC-FM