Miss A contestants feminists in bathing suits

By KEVIN CLAPP Staff Writer, The Press of Atlantic City

September 17, 2003

They are doctors and ivy leaguers and would-be lawyers and broadcasters. They are strong-willed, opinionated, sexy and intelligent.

Cynics look at Miss America contestants and see vacuous beauties. They discount any brains behind the flawless physiques. But maybe it should be the other way around.

The notion of the strong, smart woman exhibiting a multitude of talents is splashed across popular culture these days, from Reese Witherspoon's "Legally Blonde" to "Alias" on television. Thirty-five years after protesters on the Atlantic City Boardwalk burned bras and derided Miss America as "a sham," this year's contestants feel they embody all that women should aspire to.

And they don't think donning a swimsuit marginalizes their other attributes. "We've got a lot of bad rep because of the swimsuit portion," says Miss Kansas Angelea Busby. "But society is constantly saying we should look a certain way."

Adds Miss Virginia Nancy Redd, a Harvard graduate: "We don't have to shy away from being beautiful if we are intelligent. It's busting the stereotype that women have to be beautiful or intelligent. It's not either/or, it can be both."

When 75 women staged a two-hour demonstration on Sept. 7, 1968, protesters attacked the pageant for the skewed image of women it presented. In the 21st century, some don't believe things have changed much.

"I think it's larger than body image. It's about how you judge yourself and is this how we want young women to feel they are going to be judged by society," says Jennifer Armiger, former president of South Jersey National Organization for Women, Alice Paul Chapter. "It really makes your contributions to society secondary."

Armiger says Miss America is part and parcel of a culture inundated with images of reedy cover girls and Hollywood icons.

Ultimately, she says, any scholarly ambitions the pageant may possess are obscured by the means to that end: the swimsuits, the eveningwear and the talent costumes.

Naturally, Miss America Organiz-ation CEO George Bauer says times have changed and applauds contestants for leading the charge of women who are strong, attractive and independent.

Bauer said the pageant has been saying for years that women can have brains and beauty. The proof is in this year's 51 participants.

"It appears we are really seeing the results," he says. "These young women embody the spirit of the Miss America Organization."

"I think the word feminist doesn't always need to be so extreme," offers Miss Nevada Christina O'Neil. "When I think of feminists, I think of women who are ambitious and ready to fight for the rights of their fellow women, and women who just want to succeed in this country and be perceived as equal."

Elizabeth Volz, NOW New Jersey president for five years, says the pageant should be praised for working to reinvent itself. She appreciates that winners in the last decade have been more outspoken about issues they hold dear.

Could the pageant move quicker to reflect society? Yes, Volz says. But at least they are moving.

"It's not what it used to be," she says. "But it's still a 20th- century icon in the 21st century. It still needs to catch up."

Of course this year's contestants are goal-oriented, says Miss America 1989 Gretchen Carlson. Otherwise, they would not have attended Harvard, like Redd and Miss Rhode Island Laurie Gray, or graduated medical school as did Miss Wisconsin Tina Sauerhammer.

Still, long-standing stigmas are hard to shake, says the CBS News Correspondent, co-host of the network's "The Saturday Early Show."

"You can't possibly be smart, talented and beautiful," Carlson says. "In television, I think I've had to work even harder as a former Miss America to get where I am."

Redd says she is surprised by how some women still don't get it when it comes to the pageant, and bristles when people complain that intelligent women shouldn't compete in a bathing suit competition.

"I say, 'Have you been to MissAmerica.org, have you seen the competition?'" "They don't know what the Miss America pageant is about. People are going off these 1970s ideas."

What Redd argues is that the pageant simply echoes societal views.

The success of the "Legally Blonde" films shows how people are beginning to embrace the idea of smart, attractive women.

"The problem with Elle Woods is that she's fictional. Miss America can be that role model," Redd says. "Sometimes society is afraid of women who aren't afraid of themselves."

You won't find that problem among this year's pageant hopefuls. They are fun and confident. They have no problems showing off their assets, mental or otherwise.

As for the swimsuit portion of the program, Miss Wyoming Tamara Kocher says folks should take it for what it is.

"It shows off your athleticism and build and confidence," she says. "And hey, you have to keep a bit of tradition."

To e-mail Kevin Clapp [(609) 272-7255] at The Press: KClapp@pressofac.com