Three Black women are currently wearing beauty pageant crowns in 2019: Cheslie Kryst as Miss USA, Kaliegh Garris as Miss Teen USA and Nia Franklin as Miss America. And for the first time in history, black girls reigned supreme in all three of the top beauty pageants in the country simultaneously; further proving that black is indeed beautiful!
Not only did these ladies win the competitions, but Kryst and Garris had their crowns placed on their natural, curly hair…an image that young black girls needed to see. Garris told Refinery21 that some people tried to convince her to straighten her hair for the Miss Teen USA competition, but she opted for her natural curls because she felt confident in doing so.
Kaleigh Garris is a Connecticut native, and although still in high school, she plans to attend Southern Connecticut State University’s nursing program to become a trauma nurse in the future. Chelsie Kryst represents North Carolina and is a civil litigation attorney who received her law degree and MBA from Wake Forest University.
Nia Franklin represented New York and was crowned Miss America in September 2018, holding down the top spot for the 2019 season. Franklin holds a master’s degree in music composition from UNC School of the Arts and is an opera singer and advocate for the arts.
We’ll be rooting for Kryst as she represents the United States in the 2019 Miss Universe competition later, this year.
Congratulations Kaleigh Garris, Nia Franklin, and Chelsie Kryst!
Absolutely Stunning., all the best to the QUEENS.