LOS ANGELES: The transgender woman will openly compete in the Miss USA contest for the first time this year after Miss Nevada’s crowded last weekend.
Kataluna Enriquez, 27, will represent the West US State in the National Competition in November after its regional victory in Las Vegas on Sunday.
“My community, you are always in my heart.
My victory is our victory.
We just made history,” Enriquez wrote on Instagram.
Enriquez, who is a descendant of the Philippines, began to compete in transgender beauty contests in 2016, and first entered last year’s Cisgender competition.
During Miss Nevada Pageant, Enriquez – who designed and sew his own clothes – talked about the harassment and violence he had faced.
“I told the judge that as a color transgender woman and survived physical and sexual harassment, I was everything that was less represented in this country,” he told Journal of Las Vegas.
“Our sound is important.
Those whose voices don’t always sound appropriate to get the chance to hear.” Miss USA winners developed to Miss Universe Pageant, which was previously owned by Donald Trump.
Miss Universe changed its rules in 2012 to allow Transgender Beauty Queens to enter, after previously quoting the rules that only women “born naturally” can compete.
If he reached Miss Universe, Enriquez will be a transgender competitor of the two global competitions, after Ponce Angela Spain in 2018.