Miss Universe Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters has something to say about what most people think about beauty pageants — you’re wrong.
Speaking with E! News, the new Miss Universe from South Africa shattered a long-running beauty pageant stigma.
“You can be beautiful and you can be smart and you can make a meaningful difference in your community, in your country, in your world,” Demi-Leigh shared.
It’s something that Miss Teen USA Sophia Dominguez-Heithoff agrees with.
Speaking with JJJ back in the summer after she was crowned, Sophia told us that every single girl in a pageant anywhere knows that it’s stepping stone to make a huge difference in the world, and she’s one of them.
“What means so much about this sisterhood and be inducted into this kind of club is that all these women who have gone through this process are extremely successful in their careers,” she told us about being welcomed. “There are lawyers, there are women involved in politics and the entertainment industry and are just really successful in everything they do.”
Sophia added, “I think that for me, that is the most exciting thing, knowing I’m going to be surrounded by successful women who are making a difference in the world.”
Check out more pics below of the new Miss Universe during her visit to Build Series in New York City…