The 24-year- old Chelsea Manalo became first black Miss Universe Philippines
The first Black woman to be crowned Miss Universe Philippines turned out to be Filipino American.
Chelsea Manalo was born to a Filipino mother and African American father, the 24-year-old’s win was celebrated on social media as helping to “shatter” traditional beauty ideals long held in the country.
“Chelsea’s win challenges our ingrained preference for Eurocentric beauty (features) and lighter complexions in our nation,” wrote one user in response to an Instagram post of the win on Miss Universe Philippines’ official account. “Filipino beauty standard shattered into pieces,” read another.
She represented Bulacan, a province to the north of Manila, Manalo beat out 52 other contestants from around the archipelago and overseas. The competition was held at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
As the competition narrowed down to the top five finalists, Manalo was asked on stage how she would use her beauty and confidence to empower others.
“As a woman of colour, I have always faced challenges in my life. I was told that beauty has standards, actually,” she said, adding that she was taught to “believe in my mother, to always believe in yourself, uphold the vows that you have.”
“Because of these, I am already influencing a lot of women who are facing me right now,” she said, gazing out to the packed arena.
Manalo’s win is part of a wider conversation about diversifying notions of beauty in the Philippines, a country where certain Western ideals have long persisted, shaped in part by the country’s colonial past.
Lighter-skinned actors and models typically star in major TV shows, movies and fashion campaigns and as common in other Asian countries, skin-lightening treatments and products are pervasive.
Manalo, who began modelling at 14, described her insecurities growing up, in a YouTube video on Empire Philippines, which live-streamed the event.
“I grew up having insecurities as I was always bullied because of my skin and my hair type,” she said, crediting her friends and family for helping her “realize that I am beautiful in my extraordinary way.”
Manalo will represent the Philippines in the Miss Universe pageant to be held in Mexico in September.
She is vying to earn the fifth title for the country, following the footsteps of Gloria Diaz in 1969, Margie Moran in 1973, and Pia Wurtzbach in 2015 (after host Steve Harvey initially declared the wrong winner.) Catriona Gray was the last Filipino to win the title in 2018.
Source: By Kathleen Magramo/CNN
菲律賓黑人成為首位榮獲菲律賓環球小姐稱號的黑人女性
第一位榮獲菲律賓環球小姐桂冠的黑人女性是菲律賓裔美國人。
切爾西·馬納洛(Chelsea Manalo) 的母親是菲律賓人，父親是非裔美國人。理想。
「切爾西的勝利挑戰了我們國家對以歐洲為中心的美麗（特徵）和淺色膚色的根深蒂固的偏好，」一位用戶在菲律賓環球小姐官方帳戶上發布的關於獲勝的 Instagram 帖子中寫道。 另一位網友寫道：“菲律賓的美麗標準已經支離破碎。”
她代表馬尼拉北部的布拉幹省，馬納洛擊敗了來自群島各地和海外的其他 52 名參賽者。 比賽在帕賽的 SM 亞洲購物中心體育館舉行。
隨著比賽最終進入前五名決賽，馬納洛在台上被問到她將如何利用自己的美麗和自信來賦予他人力量。
「身為有色人種女性，我在生活中一直面臨挑戰。 有人告訴我，事實上，美麗是有標準的，」她說，並補充說，她被教導要“相信我的母親，永遠相信自己，堅守你的誓言。
「因為這些，我已經影響了很多現在面對我的女性，」她凝視著擁擠的競技場說道。
馬納洛的勝利是關於菲律賓美麗觀念多樣化的更廣泛討論的一部分，在這個國家，某些西方理想長期存在，部分原因是該國的殖民歷史。
膚色較淺的演員和模特兒通常在主要電視節目、電影和時尚活動中擔任主角，並且與其他亞洲國家一樣，皮膚美白治療和產品也很普遍。
Manalo 從 14 歲開始當模特，她在 EmpirePhilippines 的 YouTube 影片中描述了自己成長過程中的不安全感，該影片對整個活動進行了直播。
「我在沒有安全感的情況下長大，因為我總是因為我的皮膚和髮型而受到欺負，」她說，並感謝她的朋友和家人幫助她「意識到我以自己非凡的方式美麗。 」
馬納洛將代表菲律賓參加九月在墨西哥舉行的環球小姐選美比賽。
她正在努力追隨1969 年格洛麗亞·迪亞茲(Gloria Diaz)、1973 年瑪吉·莫蘭(Margie Moran) 和2015 年皮亞·伍茲巴赫(Pia Wurtzbach) 的腳步，爭奪第五個國家冠軍頭銜（在主持人史蒂夫·哈維(Steve Harvey) 最初宣布了錯誤的獲勝者之後）。得冠軍。
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