Cheslie’s ‘challenge of the status quo’
Upon winning Miss USA, Kryst said her term was one filled with purpose, and that she desired to “commit myself to passion, intent, and authenticity.”
She compared herself to other pageant girls, who are model-tall and thin with “don bouffant hair and have a killer walk.” Kryst, who competed in Division I Track and Field, had six-pack abs and natural curls.
In her words, being “too Black” has prevented many black women from winning on the pageant stage.
“My challenge of the status quo has certainly caught the attention of the trolls,” she said, adding that she’s had to delete comments on social due to negative comments about her appearance.
“And that was just my looks. My opinions, on the other hand, were enough to make a traditional pageant fan clutch their pearls.”
