Miss South Africa’s Zozibini Tunzi Defines Universal Beauty | Miss Universe 2019 Monday 16 December, 2019
I had the honor and the privileged to be a press corespondent for the 2019 Miss Universe competition. It was a very monumental night, for one, this competition is the first year being held at the new Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, GA.
This competition I have always said is the female version of the Superbowl. Lots of excitement and adrenaline as we watch who will be the new Miss Universe for 2019. This competition is always a highlight of what that year standards of beauty and grace is for not only the countries, but for the “universe”.
The standard of beauty lets be honest, can be cookie cutter for women. You have to be a certain height, weight, perfect teeth and yes even down to their straighest and most volumest hair or even fairest of skin. “Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who’s the fairest of them all?’ has been ingrained in pop culture and many young girl’s childhood of the Disney’s classic Snow White. In the Snow White classic, even that was beauty related. Is it about the fairest skin? Is it about the straightest hair?
Press Junket for the 2019 Miss Universe competition at Tyler Perry Studios. Atlanta, GA
As a curly haired girl myself, I was highly excited to see so many women who embraced their natural hair. Even Miss USA was a curly girl. I was so proud to see just that alone in the pagent world allowed so many natural tresses to be apart the new standard of beauty.
So it was an amazingly beautiful sight when Miss Africa, Zozibini Tunzi, was crowned as the winner of Miss Universe of 2019.
, Newly crowned Miss Universe 2019 South Africa’s Zozibini Tunzi poses during a press conference after the 2019 Miss Universe pageant at the Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, Georgia on December 8, 2019. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)
Do you understand why this was so monumental? For the first time in history, Miss Universe is a woman with natural hair. Zozibini won the crown with her beautiful short, natural course textured hair, breaking the standards of beauty with that aesthetics alone! Did you know that Zozibini Tunzi was told by “a lot of people” that she should wear a wig? That is the power of Zozibini Tunzi and a beautiful representation on why she deserved to win. She confidently wore her hair natural & short and broke the standard of beauty immediately by not conforming to the industry standards, even if it meant potentially not winning the crown. Her risk was her reward!
Outside of Tunzi’s groundbreaking pagent aesthetics, she soared and won the judges over with her inspirational response to a question from host Steve Harvey about the most important thing we should be teaching young girls today.
“I think the most important thing we should be teaching young girls today is leadership,” she said. “It’s something that has been lacking in young girls and women for a very long time. Not because we don’t want to but because of what society has labeled women to be. I think we are the most powerful beings in the world and that we should be given every opportunity, and that is what we should be teaching these young girls, to take up space.”
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Frank Micelotta/Fox/Picturegroup/Shutterstock (10495087bv) Zozibini Tunzi Miss Universe Competition, Show, Tyler Perry Studios, Atlanta, USA – 08 Dec 2019
“Society has been programmed for a very long time that never saw beauty in a way that was black girl magic, but now we are slowing moving to a time where women like myself can finally find a place in society, can finally know they’re beautiful,” she shared with us at the Miss Universe press junket.
Tunzi’s win comes South Africa’s third Miss Universe crown, having won in 1978 &17. Miss Puerto Rico Madison Anderson was runner-up, while Miss Mexico Sofía Aragón came in third.
It also marks a milestone: for the first time, black women simultaneously hold the titles of Miss Universe, Miss USA, Miss Teen USA and Miss America, with Tunzi, Cheslie Kryst, Kaliegh Garris and Nia Franklin. What does this mean? It means the standard of beauty is finally shifting and it comes in all complexions, hair textures and culture backgrounds. Historically black women have be outcasted in the standard of beauty for many years and even centuries. It proves a great deal that as this decade closes, 2019 ended off as the year of a beauty recognition with melanted women. We are not at the bottom of the beauty pole, we can be raised to the top and be ourselves.
Miss Universe is a pageant for all. Beauty is universal, it doesn’t have to look one way. Tunzi’s win is proof that it comes in many forms and we dont have to be stuck with what we have been programmed for year what beauty looks like. Regardless if Zozibini Tunzi is African, with shorter hair and darker skin, we can all agree she is stunningly beautiful inside and out!
What do you think about how society views beauty is it changing?
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Hhhhmmmm….honestly, I believe Zozibini’s win came in as a form of tokenism to us, black people! I mean….let’s start from the panel of judges and take a very close look at them and what’s happening in the world right now and today.
Zozibini is truly elegant but I have a gut feeling that “she wasn’t the winner they chose”!
I think the world is slowly changing its views on beauty and many other things as well. It is slow, though. I still see so much hate on the internet when people of color, women, or homosexuals are represented more or do something different/better than a white person.
That is so awesome you got to be there. I remember watching the Miss America and Miss Universe pageants on TV years ago. I haven’t watched them in ages however.
She’s beautiful and I am so happy for her. Zozibini definitely deserves the crown. I actually took a day off from work just to watch Miss Universe live.
Yes it is changing and for the better. We, the black community is also doing better with celebrating our uniqueness. I am happy my daughter us growing up in a time to see all of this!
I am so proud of her, it is easier for society to love long curly hair. But to embrace short natural hair, that isn’t soft and fine in texture is huge. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so proud of all of the black women currently wearing the crown. But in Ms. Universe, I see MYSELF in a way that I don’t in all the others.
Wonderful to know that Miss Africa, Zozibini Tunzi, won the Miss Universe title. I am impressed by the fact she is a woman of substance who doesn’t go by conventional laws of beauty.
She is really beautiful.I watched this on TV if I am not wrong and I loved her confident talking.She is brave enough to appear with her own natural beauty.
“Society has been programmed for a very long time that never saw beauty in a way that was black girl magic, but now we are slowing moving to a time where women like myself can finally find a place in society, can finally know they’re beautiful,” she shared with us at the Miss Universe press junket.
She is just gor4 and so elegant. I’m so happy she won.
Hhhhmmmm….honestly, I believe Zozibini’s win came in as a form of tokenism to us, black people! I mean….let’s start from the panel of judges and take a very close look at them and what’s happening in the world right now and today.
Zozibini is truly elegant but I have a gut feeling that “she wasn’t the winner they chose”!
I think the world is slowly changing its views on beauty and many other things as well. It is slow, though. I still see so much hate on the internet when people of color, women, or homosexuals are represented more or do something different/better than a white person.
Yassss I love this win it represents so much. I didn’t get to watch but I saw so many clips.
How Cool that you had a chance to be there! And especially with them crowning a black woman! Miss Universe is absolutely gorgeous!!!
I’m so happy for her and the other major beauty contestants.
It’ll be interesting to see what she does with her influence over the next year.
I am really happy for her. Her confidence really shows. A true beauty. I’m glad she defied those who told her to wear a wig and won on her own merits.
That is so awesome you got to be there. I remember watching the Miss America and Miss Universe pageants on TV years ago. I haven’t watched them in ages however.
I didn’t get to watch this one but wow, she is absolutely gorgeous! What an exciting day for South Africa!
she looks fabulous! i love her as miss universe. now lets get away from twiggy size role models.
Joy
She looks so stunning and really deserves it. So glad to see things going her way right now!
That is so awesome that you got to witness a part of history! This was our year for sure. I think it’s changing for the better slowly but surely.
It is great to see all beauty being accepted by the world. Natural Hair Girls Rock! (Natural since 2007)
her winning is amazing and such a beautiful spirit. i hope she has an amazing life.
She’s beautiful and I am so happy for her. Zozibini definitely deserves the crown. I actually took a day off from work just to watch Miss Universe live.
Yes it is changing and for the better. We, the black community is also doing better with celebrating our uniqueness. I am happy my daughter us growing up in a time to see all of this!
This win as well as the two others from ast week making history is so amazing and change and the way beauty is defined is here!
It’s so nice to see that beauty is no longer stereotyped. Thank you for sharing. Loved going through.
I am so proud of her, it is easier for society to love long curly hair. But to embrace short natural hair, that isn’t soft and fine in texture is huge. Don’t get me wrong, I’m so proud of all of the black women currently wearing the crown. But in Ms. Universe, I see MYSELF in a way that I don’t in all the others.
She is real beauty! Simple yet glamorous, congratulations to Ms. Africa!
Wow she is such a beauty, I’m so happy for her! Thanks so much for sharing this with all of us!
She is so beautiful and elegant! And what an amazing opportunity that you got to go!
Wonderful to know that Miss Africa, Zozibini Tunzi, won the Miss Universe title. I am impressed by the fact she is a woman of substance who doesn’t go by conventional laws of beauty.
Congrats to her! She looks so stunning.
She is really beautiful.I watched this on TV if I am not wrong and I loved her confident talking.She is brave enough to appear with her own natural beauty.
She is so beautiful! Congratulations to her!