Muslim model makes Miss Universe history

A year on from Frances’ ‘Burkini Ban’, which saw many Muslim women being fined or banned from beaches, Muna Jama, 27, has brought the issue to light once again by being the first women to refuse to wear a bikini in the 2017 Miss Universe competition. In her efforts to not let her religious and cultural beliefs separate her from others, she was granted the right to grace the stage in a kaftan cover up, rather than the traditional bikini. Could this be the push we need into becoming a more accepting and open minded society?

Two years ago Ms Jama had applied for the same completion but felt pressured to withdraw over her concerns about wearing a bikini as part of the swimwear round. The Miss Universe competition, formerly owned and run by the dreadful Donald Trump, includes a variation of rounds, ranging from national dress to a swimsuit round, and contestants are judged upon their ability to model the outfit and look the best. However Ms Jama, representing Great Britain, saw no reason why she should be made to wear the swimwear for that particular round, stating, “I wouldn’t wear a bikini to the beach, so I’m not going to wear one in a competition to score points.” Her campaign was successful and she chose to instead wear a beautiful colourful kaftan, paired with a silver choker and hoop earrings, failing to let her differences be a limitation to what she could achieve in the competition.

This bold move has shown that beauty should not be judged by the same standards. Rather than having women line up in uniform swimwear, competitions like Miss Universe should instead be celebrating the differences that their contestants possess, enlightening us to the diverse forms of beauty seen in cultures across our globe. Why should it be called Miss Universe if it doesn’t represent beauty on a universal scale?

Not only has the Miss Universe contestant raised awareness about cultural differences, she is also the co-founder of Cloudless Research, which aims to tackle both child abuse and the migration crisis, particularly in Somalia, her home country. The platform given to her by the competition will only cause her efforts to excel in improving the lives of refugees through education and new legislations.

For many of the contestants, the competition final will be an opportunity to showcase their meticulous training in order to reach their physical peak but for Muna this opportunity will allow her to bring to the spotlight something thought provoking and unparalleled, hopefully inspiring hundreds of women alongside her.

Following Ms Jama’s brave position on how modern beauty can be defined, it is likely that we will see more women from the Muslim background, among others, failing to let limitations prevent them from doing what they love, which in my opinion can be described as beauty itself. 

Thank you for reading!

Aman