Jamaica Beauty Queens and Apartheid (Transcript)
In 1976, the government of Jamaica did not allow for a Miss World Jamaica pageant to be held. As such, on paper, technically there is no Miss Jamaica 1976 winner. However, wearing the sash of Miss Jamaica World, Cindy Breakspeare became the second Jamaican to win the global beauty pageant when she won in 1976. On this episode, we explain how these two things are true. Apartheid
Apartheid began in South Africa in 1948 and the law, in the simplest of forms, was used to separate the races of the country. As such, at the top of the social hierarchy was white people, then those of mixed race and then Black people. In later years, another category, Asians, were added to the mix. Based on apartheid laws, everyone besides white people, were discriminated against; and Black people were treated the worst even though they were the majority race in the country. This means that the institutional segregation of Apartheid, meant that non-white people, especially Black people, were barred from living in certain areas; driven out of certain communities, have their land taken from them by white people; prevented from working in certain professions; attending certain schools and generally, having basic human rights. In the late 1950’s when black persons in South Africa started to organised against the Apartheid government, the government went after the leaders. In 1963, members of the African National Congress, an anti-apartheid organisation, was brought to stand trial with them for plotting to overthrow the government by violence. One person in particular, a young lawyer named Nelson Mandela, gave a speech from the dock that received international publicity. But, life is hard and so in June 12, 1964, eight of the accused, including Mandela, were sentenced to life imprisonment. But the world was taken notice - even Jamaica. During the late 1950’s, Jamaica became one of the first countries to ban trade from South Africa. And after the unjust arrest of Mandela and others black organisers, Jamaican political representatives continued to speak out. This included Hugh Shearer who in October 1966, in his capacity as Jamaica’s chief spokesman on foreign affairs, went on the attack of the apartheid government at a United Nations Assembly. In his speech he stated, “How much longer will the United Nations stand impotently by and allow this organised system in human degradation to continue”.
Throughout the 1960’s, other countries, and organisations across the world call out the apartheid government and place sanctions on the country. One of the most radical steps occurred in 1970 when the International Cricket Council banned South Africa from international competition. A big blow to the country where cricket is one of the most popular sports. Due to these global sanctions on the government, another organisation was been called upon to do the same to South Africa - the Miss World Organisation. Miss World and Apartheid
In 1970, the global beauty pageant was been held in London. Now at this particular staging, there were numerous opposition. Apart from been pressured to not allow South Africa to compete, there was the accusations of the pageant been racist to non-white competitors, and given this is the early years of the second wave of feminism, feminists also spoke out against the competition and the sexism it upholds. And so the organisers tried to deal with each issue in ways, they deemed fit. Specifically with the calls to place sanctions on the Apartheid government, the organisers decided to allow the country to compete but with a twist.As Peter Hain, an British anti-apartheid organiser in his youth, recalled, “We put pressure on and had put pressure on, and there had been campaigns to exclude South Africa from Miss World before 1970. But we were basically getting nowhere. Until suddenly this extra contestant appeared - called Miss Africa South, who was black. As if that solved the problem”
And so yes, the organisers allowed South Africa to enter two contestants: a white woman, Miss South Africa and a non-white woman, Miss Africa South. In that year, Miss Africa South was a black woman name Pearl Jansen who incidentally, was the first non-white competitor to represent South Africa. Now this is clearly problematic but according to one of the organisers, “If South Africa chooses to run their contest in one way, its not for us to interfere”
The organiser in Johannesburg, he called me into his oval office - ooh very grand. Now I see all these photographs on his desk, faces of men -white men, black men- that I don’t know. One of these pictures - Peter Hain was a handsome boy in his youth. And I’m thinking ‘What’s going on?’ And he says to me, ‘I want you to have a very good look at these photographs because its the opposition to the government over there. These are the people that I want you to memorise when you arrive in London. Don’t get in touch with these people. If the secret police find out that you are in cahoots with these people, you’ll be in trouble’. And upon entering London both women, Pearl and Jillian Jessup, South Africa white contestant, were mostly, always, interviewed together. But Pearl recounts that this camaraderie was really just for show. “In fact the only time I saw Jillian was when we do photographs together. I never communicate with her. I never had that rapper with her, ever. Because in the back of my mind - 'you are a bore, you are a white, you oppressed me’. But anyway”
And even the other beauty queens themselves knew the uphill battle that non-white contestants, especially black women, faced in these global pageants. As Miss World Jamaica 1968, Karlene Waddell, stated that year, “I don’t think the world is ready to accept a dark Miss World - I’ll put it that way”
Now this is where the story gets interesting cause remember there are numerous opposition calling out the pageant. On the morning of the pageant, November 20, 1970, it is reported that members of the Angry Brigade planted a homemade bomb under one of BBC lorries. The bomb went off, waking up residents in the area. However, in the media, this paled in comparison to the other events that happened on that day.Best believe we are just getting started to how messy, a literally chaotic mess, of how this staging went. On the night of a contest, a protest was occurring outside the venue of the pageant. Still, the women of Britain’s Women Liberation Movement were able to get inside the venue. And so the audience alongside the feminists sat and watch the event roll on. Then in the middle of a rather awkward montage by the American comedian Bob Hope, who was stating what he wanted do with the winner after the pageant, some members of the Women Liberation Movement, flour bomb the stages while other members threw leaflet. And so in the middle of the 1970 Ms World Pageant, flour and paper rained down in the venue. However, as history would have it, the women were restrain by the security guards and taken out the venue. And so the pageant resumed. In the end, the first black Grenadian to ever enter the contest, Jennifer Hosten was declared the winner, becoming the first black woman to win the contest while Pearl was Jansen was the winner. To note, some sources have that Jamaica’s Carole Joan Crawford was the first black woman to win. There was also controversy after because Eric Gairy, the premier of Grenada served on the judging panel as a last minute addition. So when the premier of the country that end up winning is on the voting panel, a lot of things are called into questions. However, when Gairy was asked about this, he stated: “When the English girl won a few years ago, you had four English judges. Did you ask those questions?”
Still, members of the pageant resigned soon after, as a result of intense media backlash. Years later, Marjorie Christel, Miss Sweden, who was the favourite going in, said she felt she was cheated out of the title.And yet with the PR of a black woman winning and another black woman coming second, Miss World continued to allow South Africa to send up two contestants in 1972.1973.1974 and 1975. But in 1976, with increase state violence against black people in South Africa, including the horrific massacre of black school children in Soweto, the Miss World organisers, allowing the apartheid government to continue to send up two contestant, it was seen as “legitimising the apartheid” and “aiding in the PR”. And so many countries, including Jamaica, decided to boycott the event. This is where Cindy Breakspeare come in. Cindy Breakspeare
Born in Canada in 1954, Cindy Breakspeare, moved to Jamaica at the age of four. After graduating from high school, she made her way into beauty pageantry. Soon after, she won Miss Jamaica Body Beautiful and the Miss Jamaica Body Beautiful crowns while working at the Spartan Health Club. She then went on to win the Miss Universe Bikini. After the contest, the late Oscar Heidenstam, suggested to Spartan owner, Mickey Haughton-James, that Breakspeare enter the Miss World pageant. However, there was no beauty pageant been held that year in Jamaica as the Michael Manley led government decided that the country will boycott the pageant to stand in solidarity with oppressed non-white South Africans, especially Black South Africans. And so an agreement was made for how Breakspeare could enter the contest without an actually Miss World Jamaica pageant been held on the island. As she recalled in an interview with Yendi Phillips:“Remember, I got there kind of vicariously.Because there was no Miss Jamaica at the time -the government had stopped it. So it was Miss Jamaica Body Beautiful then it was Miss Universe Bikini. And the organisers of Miss Universe Bikini, a lovely old gentleman Oscar Heidenstam, I’ll never forget his name, said to Mikey, you should try and get her into Miss World, she’d probably do well. And Mr. Mickey - being Mickey, went right ahead and did what he had to do. And the next thing I knew, the phone call came to say yes, we’ll accept her as long as she won an open contest in her own country. Meaning anyone could have entered and Jamaica had no objection to waring the sash of Jamaica”
And as so history will have it Cindy went on to win the 1976 Miss World competition. Still, there was little acknowledgement of the win by the government and so in December of the same year, she returned to the island, without the usual celebratory fanfare that countries would have for their Miss World winners. When asked about her participation in the event upon her return to the island, The Gleaner in a December 27, 1976 article titled, “Cindy Comes In Quietly”, reported“Cindy said that if the Government of Jamaica had officially asked her to withdraw she would have done so. She said she had no communication from them or any other organisation asking her to withdraw… Cindy’s view was that it was not altogether reasonable for other countries to withdraw from the contest because of the participation of South Africa”.
In her own words she said, “I am strongly averse to apartheid but South Africa had come to this agreement with Mecca that although this year they sent one white and one black girl, next year they would make their contest a truly multi-racial one, and this seemed to me quite fair… It was certainly never my intention to go against the wishes of the government. As far as I was concerned, it was part of a personal plan to try to get somewhere in life”
Cindy was indeed correct. In 1977, only one contestant was sent to represent South Africa where their contest was open to all races. However, the Jamaican government still did not reinstate the Miss Jamaica pageant to be held on the island as South Africa was still allowed to compete in Miss World. As such, it was decided that the same privileges that allowed Cindy to compete can also be given to Sandra. However, she was asked by the government to not contest the pageant and she did not. According to a November 19, 1977 editorial in The Gleaner, Miss Kong, “herself believed that Miss South Africa’s presence made it impossible for her to continue”. In 1978, the Miss World organisation banned the participation of South Africa, altogether, and so Jamaica reinstated the pageant that year. Joan Mcdonald was crowned Miss Jamaica World 1978. Many consider her Jamaica’s first dark skinned Miss Jamaica World and one of the first Jamaican beauty queen who competed in an afro. By all accounts, the afro hair trailblazers were Marilyn Wright, Jamaica's 1972 Miss Universe contestant and Andrea Lyons, Jamaica Miss World contestant 1974. Legacy
As history would have, Apartheid in South Africa ended in the early 1990’s where Nelson Mandela, was released from prison in 1990. He spent 27 years in lockup. Four years later, he became the South Africa’s first black president in what was the country’s first democratic election. One of the observer of that election was former prime minister of Jamaica, Michael Manley. Manley also led the Commonwealth Observer Mission to South Africa in 1992 and 1993. For his efforts in taken a stance against the apartheid government throughout his tenure as prime minister, Manley, was awarded South Africa’s Gold Award of the Order of the Companions of Oliver Tambo. In 2013, another Jamaican Prime Minister, PJ Patterson, was awarded the same award. And yet, in years to come, there would be other Jamaica beauty queens who participated in global pageants despite calls for them to boycott. In 2002, in the wake of other countries’ representatives boycotting if Nigeria was allowed to host the Miss World 2022 pageant, there were calls in the Jamaica media for the country to do the same. See, Nigeria came under intense international backlash after a woman was sentenced to death by stoning for apparently committing adultery and having a child out of wedlock. Mind you, the man who was accused of been the father of the child was excused. In the end, the Jamaica representative, Danielle Ohayon, still contested the pageant that was held in Nigeria has planned. Then, almost two decades later, there were calls for Miss Jamaica Universe 2021, Daena Soares , to boycott the global pageant as it was being hosted in Israel. Daena Soares competed.