“Anybody who eats aquirrels knows that there is only one way to skin a squirrel. Hahaha. Also, you organizer needs to be compensated. I believe she has been working on it for 3 weeks, and even took time off of work.”

Haha…I agree she should be compensated.

I need a beer.

“Really? So if a woman has been raped and has an abortion she can’t be miss asian oregon? and forget raped, she get accidentally pregnant and has an abortion she technically can’t be miss asian oregon.?

This is the kind of BS that makes people not only disapprove of contests like this but out right hate them as it is like an attack on women.

I admit, you do have a point, lingyai. Just to be clear, we would still take an application from the hypothetical formerly pregnant woman who checked the “no” box. They could put their explanation in the space below, and it would be considered.

It’s a hard line to set rules for any competition. Look at the Presidency–my friend Hoang was a Marine for the US military (hear his story here), who risked his life for a country he loved during the first Iraq war (the legal one under the first Bush), but he’ll never be eligible to run for the U.S. Presidency because he wasn’t born here. It’s especially ironic because his love for the U.S. comes from the fact that he was saved and brought to this country by the Marines. So does that birth rule make sense? I don’t know.

In this case, we needed to start somewhere with basic guidelines for the kind of contestants we wanted. Since it’s a feed-in competition to Miss Asian America, we had similar guidelines to them–no illegal drug usage, never been married, never been pregnant.

For me, I know it’s a different experience and image when talking about post and pre-pregnant/marriage people. It’s complex, but I can tell you that I’m a totally different person since having kids. It would feel weird for me to enter such a competition with people who have never been married and never had kids. The feel and aura is different. So let me just say that I don’t know if the decision was right or wrong for 99% of the cases out there, but it’s something we can consider.

Anyway, I’m going to see if I can get some audio clips from the pageant. I think, lingyai, that you’ll like what the contestants had to say about their activist platforms (sustainability, bridging different cultures, and inspiring young people). I’ll be the first to admit that everything we’re doing right now isn’t perfect, but we can get better. And as AG said, I think we did do many things right.

Okay, I need a beer.

Why don’t you help us think of more ‘What ifs.’ What if one of the applicants was at a party and got high off of someone else’s marijuana? What if she was smoking a ciggarrette and someone laced it with herion?

Thank you and all the protestors for complaining about what you do not like about the pageant.

How about complaining about the fact that each contestant must submit a one page essay on each of the following topics:

• How do you define Asian-American.
• How do you identify with being Asian-American.
• Your career goals.
• Your personal goals.
• How you would use the title of Miss Asian Oregon.

BTW, the pageant went off sucessfully. I am very proud of the contestants, they did a wonderful job.

I just looked at the application for the contest.

It says women can only compete if the have never been pregnant.
http://missasianoregon.com/downloads/application.pdf

Really? So if a woman has been raped and has an abortion she can’t be miss asian oregon? and forget raped, she get accidentally pregnant and has an abortion she technically can’t be miss asian oregon.?

This is the kind of BS that makes people not only disapprove of contests like this but out right hate them as it is like an attack on women.

This pregnant rule is the same as miss America contest (I knew someone who competed on the local level) and is anti woman and anti choice.

again I know jaehwan and people have worked hard on this contest and are not purposefully anti woman and are trying to do a what they see as a good thing. If it happens next year I hope they will change the rules, and change the contest.

“Why not feature photos of REAL groundbreaking Asian American women who have achieved something and who redefine beauty, not stock models? Yuri Kochiyama, Helen Zia, Iris Chang, Renee Tajima-Pena, Elaine Kim, Ruth Osawa, Nobuko Miyamoto come immediately to mind.”

Well, that’s in the past. I believe in strong past leaders, but I certainly don’t want to be stuck in the past. The purpose of this pageant is to focus on new, young leaders, not old leaders. I could’ve put a picture of Mona Lee Locke as well, who was the first Miss Asian America. And maybe we do want to build a tradition. But the focus is on women between 15 and 26, and so that’s what we have.

Why not come up with something totally cool and new, like the Webby awards did for internet ingenuity? After all, there are so many ingenius and talented (and beautiful because they are ingenius and talented) designers, inventers, entrepreneurs, community leaders/activists out there already, working hard, who are not just willowy barely twenty-somethings who have nothing yet to show but “attitude” and “cuteness”.

I’m not against that. I think that’s a great idea. But it’s not the only idea. Some people watch Tyra Banks and describe her show as vapid, superficial, etc., but the truth is that she has confronted issues of beauty of self-image head on with her show.

I believe in working hard, but I’m more about working smart. This pageant will provide a platform for young women to effect change. It’s a great platform for women to have, and it is an institution which will give women the visibility they need, which is why I support it. There are a hundred ways to skin a squirrel; I’m looking for the best ways to do so.

As for people who have “nothing yet to show,” I believe in young people. We all start somewhere.

If redefining Asian American beauty and promoting great community contributions/work are the true aim of this event, why use such a tired and cliched vehicle as a beauty pageant? I have to agree with “No Thank You”–your “stock online” photos certainly do not welcome “nontraditional” beauties to participate in your pageant. Why not feature photos of REAL groundbreaking Asian American women who have achieved something and who redefine beauty, not stock models? Yuri Kochiyama, Helen Zia, Iris Chang, Renee Tajima-Pena, Elaine Kim, Ruth Osawa, Nobuko Miyamoto come immediately to mind. Also, it doesn’t seem like you’re really serious about having a true dialogue between the pro and anti-pageant proponents when you have those two events on two different days with completely different formats. Why not come up with something totally cool and new, like the Webby awards did for internet ingenuity? After all, there are so many ingenius and talented (and beautiful because they are ingenius and talented) designers, inventers, entrepreneurs, community leaders/activists out there already, working hard, who are not just willowy barely twenty-somethings who have nothing yet to show but “attitude” and “cuteness”. You know what’s really cool? The “Intel Star” TV ad featuring people going gaga over Ajay Bhatt, co-inventor of the USB. 1 million viewers on Youtube prove that, right?

In any case, all those pictures are stock photos that we bought from an online service. After our first pageant, we will be replacing all the pictures with those of our contestants, all of whom are very respectable. Please let us know what you think of the new pictures once they’re up. Stay tuned!