After reading the eligibility criteria of Mister Rwanda, it struck me how open and inclusive it is than Miss Rwanda is. It has showed me a couple of things. It showed me change and new perspectives regarding what beauty pageants should be all about, and also shows Miss Rwanda in a different light. It highlights gender stereotypes in the Rwandan society, shows a new era for young Rwandan men and women.
Miss Rwanda beauty pageant tends to draw emphasis on selecting girls that never gave birth as one of major criteria.
Meanwhile, Mister Rwanda is not totally conforming to certain beliefs of our society by challenging the status quo and narratives that having children out of wedlock is inappropriate.
In our society, the person instantly becomes a cast away, Mister Rwanda allowed young men of all sorts of background and profile to be eligible to enter into the competition which is a change and something that has never been done before.
By allowing young men with children to be eligible in the contest, Mister Rwanda’s openness demonstrated that our society is comfortable with certain things about one gender than they are when it concerns the other. It is frowned upon in our society when a woman bears a child with no husband but if it is a man that has a child, it is not unusual and not at all a cultural aggression.
So, am still wondering why Miss Rwanda can’t allow that same opportunity to some girls that have children.
Miss Rwanda concept shows that their mission is about empowering young girls by giving them platform to shine. However, female empowerment should go hand in hand with inclusivity and acceptance.
The Government of Rwanda has set a good example in female empowerment by designing many programs giving opportunities to every woman and girl, no matter their profile and backgrounds.
These contests should follow the suit and give the castaways, a platform to shine too.
Platforms like Miss global allow unwed mothers to contest with a belief that single mothers may be able to bring in other life experiences. I believe, this could be the same case with Miss Rwanda.
It is a new era for our country. It is a new era for women and men. So, such contests should consider all these factors before establishing the criteria. Their aim is empowerment, and so should be the focus.
Leave a Reply