Betsy DeVos was ceremoniously greeted with boos at the commencement ceremony at an HBCU. Less than a week later, as irony would have it, an HBCU alum was crowned Miss USA.
This should be a small victory for anyone with a vested interest in HBCUs.
You know, people like… black people.
But it isn’t.
After all, it’s 2017, and Donald Trump is president. I know, it sounds weird.
Even weirder, a black woman – a scientist – just became Miss USA.
Miss District of Columbia, a physical scientist working at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, took the Miss USA crown to the country’s capital for the second consecutive year.
[…] It was not just her looks that made McCullough stand out from the competition. Out of the 51 contestants, the final five women were asked a series of questions discussing current topics, from the pros and cons of social media to women’s rights. McCullough’s first question concerned health care: Is it a right or a privilege? “I’m definitely going to say it’s a privilege,” Miss District of Columbia said.
McCullough, whose Twitter account follows three members of the Trump family— Donald Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump— added: “As a government employee, I’m granted health care and I see firsthand that for one to have health care, you need to have jobs. We need to continue to cultivate this environment that we’re given the opportunity to have health care as well as jobs to all American citizens worldwide.”
[…] In another question and answer round, McCullough was asked about her opinion on feminism and if she considers herself a feminist. She replied she prefers the term “equalism.”
“So as a woman scientist in the government, I’d like to lately transpose the word feminism to equalism,” McCullough said. “I don’t really want to consider myself—try not to consider myself like this die-hard, you know, like, ‘Oh, I don’t really care about men.’ But one thing I’m gonna say, though, is women, we are just as equal as men when it comes to opportunity in the workplace.”
So you’re thinking, “What’s the big deal, RiPPa? I mean, she isn’t the first black woman to be crowned Miss USA. What’s your problem? Yeah, racism is dead, fool.”
Well, it’s weird enough that there’s a racist, xenophobic, and misogynistic occasional pussy-grabber as our president. Now, there’s a black woman who believes that affordable health care should be a “privilege,” and not a “right,” in America. Oh, and she also thinks that feminism is a bullshit man-hating concept, because, employment opportunities for men and women in America, are equal. Wait, did I mention that the new Miss America is black?
Maybe I’m just trippin’, but with these two things happening in the same year, I feel like I’m trapped in an episode of the Twilight Zone. Hopefully, this isn’t the new normal, folks. I’d hate to think that, even for black folks, reality has been suspended. I mean, there’s no way that we black people are all in that sunken place. Yes, thank Jordan Peele for giving us new ideas.
I Expected More From This Miss USA
This is going to sound sexist (and it actually is) but, I don’t look to anyone running to be Miss USA to have the answers to world problems. However, when you happen to be a scientist – a black scientist – I expect more from you. Wait, did I mention that she’s a black scientist?
That said, I don’t expect to hear Miss America say that job creation is the answer to our healthcare crisis. As is, 95% of the country’s insured have employer-based health insurance. Even so, it’s still a financial hardship for many.
A black scientist should know this.
Similarly, if anybody knows that men and women do not have equal employment opportunities, it would be a black woman. Not just any black woman. In particular, a black woman who knows about the lack of diversity in STEM programs.
Yet, the new Miss USA is being touted as a hero by conservatives.
I suppose this is a good thing.
Why?
If anything, I guess it signals that we are indeed post-racial.