Loud hip-hop music began to play as contestants entered the room accompanied by thunderous applause and whoops from the audience at The Miss Black and Gold Scholarship Pageant Thursday.
Members of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity flanked the T-shaped stage, clad in suits with golden ties. The fraternity sponsored and organized the pageant, but it seemed the men’s main purpose was to help the ladies move on and off of the stage in their extremely high heels.
Tripp Commons in Memorial Union was regal, the windows covered with thick golden curtains, and the stage and judge’s table draped with black cloth.
“The purpose of the pageant is to recognize outstanding young women who serve as role models in our community,” Jonathan Harris, UW-Madison student and event coordinator, said. “It illuminates women’s self-confidence, poise, intelligence and beauty.”
These qualities became quickly apparent in the seven contestants, all UW-Madison students, as they delivered brief bios, letting the audience know who they are and why they deserve the title Miss Black and Gold.
“My story mirrors that of so many of my fellow black Americans,” contestant Miona Short said, “grandparents born to a sharecropping family in Mississippi, moved to the west side during the second great migration.”
Short said she attributes much of her success to the support of her family.
“Because of my family’s tireless and dedicated work, I stand here before you today as a first-generation sophomore, a Spanish major, a First Wave scholar and the first black woman to major in astrophysics here at UW-Madison,” Short said
Short was not the only contestant with more than one language under her belt. Ada Ezumba delivered part of her introduction in Chinese and part in French.
Hard work and strength were common threads running through the speeches of each of the accomplished contestants. Many were first-generation college students and recipients of prestigious scholarships.
“A phrase I like to live by is ‘don’t feel entitled to anything you didn’t sweat and struggle for,’” Risharda Bond said.
She said her family dealt with extreme poverty and had for a period of time been homeless, but she did not let that bring her down.
“I am not defined by my adversities, but how I have continued to overcome them,” she added.
Audience members were instructed not to catcall as the women presented their swimwear, and to treat the contestants like their sisters or daughters. Some of the outfits had more flair than others, and some contestants carried props such as umbrellas and beach balls.
If walking across the stage in swimwear and dauntingly high heels was not enough, the women then performed a talent of their choosing. Some sang, many did different styles of dance and two did original spoken word performances.
For the final segment of the pageant, the contestants donned evening gowns and were asked a complex question for which they had not prepared. Audiences cast their votes for certain categories online, and the four judges deliberated, ultimately crowning Wynetta McIntosh Miss Black and Gold 2015.
The prize for Miss Black and Gold is a scholarship for academic pursuits of up to $300.
Other winners included:
- Best Wardrobe, as voted by audience members: Risharda Bond
- Most Creative, as voted by audience members: Wynetta McIntosh
- Miss Gold (second runner-up): Risharda Bond
- Miss Black (first runner-up): Taniesha Broadway
